spaghetti con muscoli e zucchini
spaghetti with mussels and zucchini
Pragmatic Pasta - a fantastically easy fish pasta with incredible flavour combinations. The pragamtic part is grabbing a couple of packets of store-prepared garlic butter mussels (I used Sainsbury’s Sottish Rope-grown Mussels in Garlic Butter) - but of course you could buy live mussels and prepare them from scratch.
I’ve included both methods below, but bear in mind that using live mussels is obviously a much more fiddly route to take - and only you can decide if the extra effort of going to a fishmonger and storing, preparing and cooking live mussels is worth the taste to you.
WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO DO
(scroll down for the full method)
FOR FOUR PEOPLE
(using pre-cooked mussels)
spiralise the zucchini
cook the zucchini
warm the pre-cooked mussels
boil and cook the pasta
combine ingredients with pasta
METHOD
To go the ‘pragmatic’ route, begin by preparing the zucchini - I used a cheap ‘spiralizer’ to make spirals from three large zucchini. Fry the zucchini spirals in EVO until they begin to clour a little and soften. Don’t cook them until they fall apart because you need them to survive being tossed and mixed with the spaghetti. Cook the mussels according to the packet’s instructions as you boil the pasta. Remove about two thirds of them from their shells and throw those empty shells away, then cover all the mussels and set aside. Save the liquor from the mussels in case you want to add a little of it at the combining stage.
When the pasta gets to ever so slightly just past ‘al dente’ you can add it to the cooked zucchini, in a pasta pan. Add a little pasta water and some of the juice from the mussels packets, and combine the zucchini with the pasta for a minute or so. My preference is not to go super starchy with the mantecatura and make wallpaper paste. Add the mussels and their shells, discarding any that haven’t opened. Stir and toss to ensure the ingredients are evenly spread through the pasta and then serve. Sprinkle with the pepper of your choice, pecorino, and dried seaweed flakes.
To prepare this dish with fresh mussels, first find a reputable fishmonger! Many of the large UK supermarkets have branches with extensive fish counters, but often the shellfish can be a little tired looking. My experience is you’ll also find better customer service and advice when you shop at independent fishmongers or farmers’ markets than at large supermakets, and the qulity of what you can buy is normally higher.
Have you heard the saying ‘only eat mussels when there’s an R in the month?’ That’s down to mussels being fatter and more meaty in the UK in those months, particularly between September and April, and sometimes, depending on the climate in any given year, well into the Spring months too. A knowledgeable and honest fishmonger will be able to advise you on all kinds of things relating to choosing and cooking mussels, so don’t be afraid to ask.
When you buy your mussels, make sure they smell like the sea, not old fish! Ask your fishmonger when the mussels were caught or put on the shelf, as most will only last 4-5 days after being caught. Mussels which still have the ‘beard’ or ‘byssus’ attached are normally going to last longer than mussels that have been cleaned thoroughly. It’s more prepartion but try and buy mussels that aren’t too clean and leave the cleaning until a few hours before cooking. The best way to store mussels is to wrap them loosely in damp newspaper in a bowl without a lid - they need air! If any of your live mussels have opend up, tap the shell - as long as it closes immediately it’s still alive and can be cooked. If it doesn’t, it’s dead and you need to chuck it.
To cook mussels that you’ve cleaned, put a few centimetres of boiling water into a saucepan, add the mussels and cover to steam them for 3-4 mins or until they have opened. You can add a splash of wine and crushed garlic and a knob of butter at this stage. Discard any mussels that don’t open. Substitute the ‘boil in the bag’ section of the recipe on the previous page with this method, and you’re done.
NUTRITION per serving
KCAL: 606
Fat (g): 11.9
Sat Fat (g): 3.8
Carb (g): 93.8
Sug (g): 9.5
Fibre(g): 5.4
Prot (g): 34.7
Salt (g): 3.31
Nutritional information is provided as an indication only of approximate values for the recipe on this page. You should make your own calculations if you have specific dietry requirements or are required to follow a strict calorie-controlled diet.
