spaghettoni con cozze al pomodoro
spaghettoni with mussels in a tomato sauce
Clearly one for lovers of mussels - think big, robust tomato pasta with gorgeous fishy garlicky goodness. This is one of those recipes where you can really cut corners if you’re in a hurry - simply by buying some good, pre-prepared ingredients from a supermarket. Of course, if you’ve got access to a good fishmonger and are confident with cooking fresh mussels in garlic, go right ahead and do that - but this variaton of the recipe is all about being ecconomical with time whilst sacrificing the minimum of taste. So I used Sainsbury’s chilled musseles, ready to boil-in-the bag.
WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO DO
(scroll down for the full method)
prepare the ingredients
roast half the fresh tomatoes
make a sauce with the rest
boil the water for mussels and pasta
boil the pasta
heat the bagged mussels
shell 2/3rd of the mussels
combine pasta and sauce
add mussels to pasta
add roast tomatoes
add other ingredients
plate and garnish with extra mussels
spaghettoni with mussels in a tomato sauce
INGREDIENTS
FOR FOUR PEOPLE TOMATO SAUCE
approx 400g cherry/ plum tomatoes
1 cove of garlic
fresh basil
MUSSELS
1500g pre-prepared mussels in garlic butter (each 500g)
(approx 3 packets)
or
approx 1.5 kg fresh mussels, garlic and butter
PASTA
400g dry spaghettoni
/ spaghetti
MANTECATURA (?)
none
METHOD
Start by making a simple tomato sauce with about half the tomatoes (this is going to cover the pasta and be a base for the mussels topping). Just chop them up relatively small, and cook in a tablespoon of olive oil. After they start to break down, add the garlic, chopped finely, and if need be a little water, reducing until you get a thick paste, not at all watery. Be rustic. Leave the skin and seeds in. Next (or simultaneously if you’re feeling daring) you’re going to pan-roast the other half of the tomoatoes in olive oil, to add as an extra garnish when you come to put everything together. I use a heavy iron pan on a high heat for a few minutes, then reduce to a low heat and continue cooking until they’re soft and nicely browned. When you’ve cooked all the tomatoes, set them aside.
At about this time you need to put the water on to boil for the pasta, and if you’re using pre-prepared mussels, a separate saucepan with boiling water for those too. (To save time waiting for water to boil and get up to temperature, I use a kettle to pre-boil jug-fulls of water. Remember though that that kind of thing really pushes up your electricity bill, as my wife likes to point out.)
NB The spaghettoni I like to use take about 12 mins to cook, and the mussels about 10 mins. Try and time things so that the pasta is cooked about 5 mins before the mussels - because you’ll need time to remove roughly two thirds of the mussels from their shells. And remember to keep hold of all the cooking juices for the mussels. Keep checking the pasta as it cooks and when it’s just on ‘al dente’, get ready to transfer it to a large frying pan, with about half of your ‘base’ tomato sauce. Mix it in together with a ladle or two of the buttery, garlicky cooking juices and warm and mix on a medium heat, possibly not more than a minute or two, or until the pasta is cooked to your liking. Add more tomoato sauce if you want a bit more red!
When you’re ready, fold in the mussels you took from the shells, the roasted half-tomatoes, a big handful of torn basil leaves or flat-leaf parsley, and maybe a big sprinkle of cayenne pepper / peperoncino. Dish up the individual portions and throw in three or four mussels in their shells onto as you add the pasta onto each plate. Think about a cheeky squeeze of lemon too. Don’t forget to put individual side plates or a large bowl on the table for the mussel shells!
NUTRITION per serving
KCAL: 453
Fat (g): 5.1
Sat Fat (g): 1.6
Carb (g): 84.3
Sug (g): 7.5
Fibre(g): 4.9
Prot (g): 22
Salt (g): 1.5
