Scottish Mussels Cooked in White Beer

Garnish with the fennel fronds and serve with skinny fries or some crusty bread and butter to mop up the juices.

Last Autumn when we (Scottish Shellfish) were exhibiting at an event to showcase Scottish produce we had the pleasure of meeting Petra Wetzel, the founder and MD of West Brewing. Our conversation inevitably turned to the match made in heaven that is mussels and beer, Petra suggested we try some Heidi Weisse, a Bavarian style white beer.

We headed home with some beer and mussels to experiment in the kitchen. A few simple additions later we came up with the recipe below. Quick and simple to make, this really is fast food!

Nic Cargill, National Account Manager at Scottish Shellfish

INGREDIENTS

1kg of fresh Scottish mussels
50g Fennel
50g Shallot
50g Carrots
50g Celery
1 Clove of garlic
330ml of Wheat Beer (or another craft beer of your choice)
100ml Double Cream
A small handful of chopped flat-leaf parsley
Black pepper to season

Serves: 2

METHOD

Prep: 10min › Cook: 10min › Ready in: 20min

Before you start you will need large saucepan with a tight fitting lid.

Finely slice the carrots, celery, shallot and fennel – keep the fronds from the top of the fennel to use as a garnish later.
Heat a little oil in the bottom of a large saucepan (medium heat) and sauté the vegetables for 3-4 minutes until they start to soften.
Add in the garlic and cook for another 1-2 minutes.
Stir in the mussels to evenly mix with the vegetables and then turn the heat up to high. Immediately add the beer, stir well and place the lid on the saucepan.
Steam for 3-4 minutes. Once the mussels have opened scoop the mussels out into a large serving bowl and cover with foil to keep warm.
Place the pan back on the heat and add the cream and season with black pepper.
Reduce until the sauce begins to thicken remove from heat, stir in the chopped parsley and pour over the cooked mussels.
Garnish with the fennel fronds and serve with skinny fries or some crusty bread and butter to mop up the juices.