Shellfish can be a daunting thing to try and cook, but I have to say, mussels are by far the easiest. There is no doubting when they are done, so you won’t overcook them, and they require very simple flavoring to be absolutely delectable.

While this dish has a lot of ingredients, all of them can easily be found in any grocery store, and after all the prep work of chopping, only takes about ten minutes to put together.

Mussels from a restaurant can be pricey, but when made at home are incredibly inexpensive. Four people can have huge bowls of mussels for under $15, which comes out to about $3.50 per person.

This dish is simple enough to make for yourself and a friend, but fancy enough to serve to the most important of guests.

Serves 4:
2 lbs. mussels
2 shallots, minced
4 tomatoes, seeded and diced
5 cloves of garlic
1 tbs salt
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp red chili flakes
1 tbs chopped thyme
1/4 cup chopped parsley
3/4 stick of butter
2 1/2 cups dry white wine
Zest and juice of 2 lemons
1 tablespoon honey

1. Clean the mussels. Make sure that before you cook your mussels that all of them are closed. If you find an open shell, try tapping it against the counter to see if it closes. If the mussel doesn’t close, it’s not alive and needs to be discarded. Clean off each one of the mussels under cold water and pull out the “beard,” which is a fibrous, hair-like piece that can sometimes stick out of the shell. Soak the mussels in a bowl of cold water with 2 tablespoons of flour for ten minutes. The flour water allows the mussels to disgorge any sand or dirt that may be inside. After removing the mussels from the flour water, rinse one last time and set aside.

2. Over medium-high heat, sauté the shallots in the butter in a large pot until they are tender, for about five minutes. Add the tomatoes and allow them to cook for another five minutes. Then, add the garlic, salt, pepper, chili flakes, thyme, parsley and honey. After making sure all the ingredients are well combined, add the white wine, lemon zest and juice. Allow the broth to cook for another minute or two.

3. Add the mussels to the pot and put on the lid. Check back in about five minutes. The very second the mussels open up, they are done.
Make sure to serve these mussels in shallow bowls with plenty of broth, with some good crusty bread for dipping. This is sure to become a favorite of your friends and family.