I started my previous post with the thought, „Who would have thought a few years ago that seafood would be a permanent fixture on restaurant tables!” I promised to write more recipes if there was interest. Next up is the popular Zuppa di Cozze, Italian black mussel soup!
I was lucky to have learned to cook Italian food in Sicilian kitchens, but I was also unlucky, because it makes the atrocities that many people commit against the flavours of Italy, including seafood, much more terrible to me than the simple Zuppa di Cozze.
First steps
First, the choice of the raw material itself is important. Fresh is best, but no doubt there are already some pretty good frozen products. To avoid experimentation, Matusz-Vad offers pre-cooked, cleaned and frozen product in kilo packs for two generous portions.
As this is an Italian dish, please refrain from giving the exact proportions. These dishes can only be prepared well with a great deal of joie de vivre and feeling, not as a pharmacy, but as a way of bringing the Italian way of life to your plate.
I sauté some chopped onion over a low heat in extra virgin cooking oil in a high-walled pot, as soon as it starts to glaze I sprinkle on the crushed and chopped garlic (a lot) and add the cleaned mussels - from the shell of course, fresh ones are closed shelled, pre-cooked ones can be slightly open.
Shell me!
The mussel cools the oil, but when it gets too hot again, I pour a good glass of dry white wine over it. This is the start of the steaming of the mussels, and I throw in two bay leaves, preferably green, and a wonderful, harmonious smell dominates the kitchen. Now the tomatoes are ready, 2-3 dl for a kilo of mussels. I salt it, sprinkle it lightly with freshly ground black pepper, and when it starts to crumble (the mussels will have opened), I cool it again with a little stock or water. Don't let the mussels swim! It's not like Hungarian soup, I would say it's more like a stew with a lot of stock. Then I taste it, „adjust the flavour”, add some sweet, whole, small tomatoes, and it's almost done.
The texture of the mussels is good when they are soft and springy. Care must be taken because if overcooked, it will harden or lose all water and flavour. Cooking time is 8-12 minutes. It is advisable to turn it several times with a large slotted spoon to ensure even simmering. At the very end, I freshen it with chopped parsley leaves and basil leaves to preserve the flavours.
Serving
The serving is simple, with a rustic, home-style Mediterranean dish. The mussels (14 to 16 per serving) are placed in a deep dish and juiced, toasted baguette slices are placed on the edge of the plate, and a sprinkling of roughly chopped basil leaves or parsley greens can be added.
Our food is fragrant, eye-catching, like a painting, eaten with spoon, hand and dipped, a great accompaniment to a medium-bodied red wine.
Let me know how it went!
Buon appetito! #
-Pupa-
