Mussels are staples in my West Coast Paella or Seafood potjies, but my son's absolute favourite is mussels in a creamy, garlic sauce or soup. Even as a little boy, he never fell for the fish fingers or chicken nuggets, but ordered this in restaurants often!
All you need for a delicious, quick midweek meal, or maybe a starter to a meal with friends, is a bowl of mussels in a fragrant tomato sauce, a freshly baked ciabatta and voila: a table full of happy guests licking their bowls and fingers, probably asking for seconds! For a fragrant tomato sauce, you have to look no further. I was lucky enough to get hold of chef Michael Broughton's recipe.
Mussels in Tomato Sauce
Ingredients:
Sweat onions and garlic in butter and oil, cook (45min) with lid on until very soft and sweet. Turn up the heat to high and boil away the liquid until it begins to fry (don't colour) add the tomato paste and cook stirring for 5 to 6 minutes (to cool off the acidity) then add the rest of ingredients (except the basil) and blitz until slightly chunky or smoother if you like, then simmer slowly for 2 ½ hours over a low heat adding more water if it dries out too quickly. When done, remove from heat, stir in the basil and a pepper and infuse with the lid on for 20 minutes, then use or keep in the fridge for two days or freeze until needed. I added the mussels 5 minutes before cooking time was done. This gives enough time for the fresh mussels to open. Discard any mussels that do not open. When mussels are cooked, add chopped basil, place lid back on and allow to infuse for 10 minutes before serving. Serve with buttery warm ciabatta.
