Fresh Mussels: Simple, Sustainable and So Delicious

How to Check Your Mussels

Before cooking your mussels, give them a quick check. Fresh live mussels will generally be tightly closed. If you find one that is slightly open, give it a tap and leave it for a few minutes. If it closes, it is alive and absolutely fine to cook. If it remains open and doesn’t respond, discard it.

You should also remove any mussels with badly cracked or broken shells. Don’t be alarmed if you find a little variation in the size, colour or appearance of the shells. Mussels are a natural product and no two are going to look exactly the same.

Cleaning Your Mussels

One of the great things about buying cultivated mussels is that they require far less cleaning than mussels collected from the wild. There’s no need to soak them in fresh water to remove sand. In fact, we don’t recommend soaking live mussels in fresh water at all.

Give the shells a rinse under cold running water and use a small clean brush to remove anything clinging to the outside. You may also notice a little stringy “beard” sticking out from between some of the shells. This is called the byssus and is what the mussel uses to attach itself to the ropes on which it grows.

To remove it, hold the mussel firmly and pull the beard towards the hinge of the shell. You can also use a small knife to help remove any stubborn bits. Once they’re rinsed and cleaned, they’re ready for the pot.

Cooking Fresh Mussels

Mussels cook incredibly quickly, which is another reason we love them for an easy dinner. Start by preparing your sauce or cooking liquid in a large pot with a lid. Once your base is ready and bubbling away, add the cleaned mussels, pop on the lid and allow them to steam.

They should start opening within just a few minutes. Give the pot a good shake once or twice so that the mussels cook evenly and are coated in all that lovely sauce. Try not to overcook them, as the meat can become firm and lose some of its lovely juicy texture.

There has long been a rule that any mussel that doesn’t open during cooking must automatically be thrown away. Current food science doesn’t support using an unopened shell alone as proof that a mussel is bad. The more important checks are that your mussels were fresh and alive before cooking and that they have been handled and stored correctly.

How to Store Fresh Mussels

Fresh mussels are alive when you buy them, so they need to breathe. Keep them cold in the fridge and never store them submerged in water or sealed tightly inside an airtight container or plastic bag.

We recommend cooking fresh mussels as soon as possible after receiving them. Until you’re ready to use them, place them in a bowl or colander in the fridge and cover loosely with a clean damp cloth. If you’re not going to use them while they’re fresh, cook them first and then freeze the cooked mussel meat or cooked mussels in their liquid.

As with all fresh seafood, the sooner you enjoy them, the better.

What About Red Tide?

If you live in the Western Cape, you’ve probably heard us talking about red tide before. Red tide is the common name given to certain harmful algal blooms. Some of these blooms can produce toxins that accumulate in filter-feeding shellfish such as mussels and oysters.

This is important because cooking does not necessarily make contaminated shellfish safe to eat. It is also worth knowing that a harmful algal bloom isn’t always visibly red, so you cannot judge whether wild shellfish are safe simply by looking at the water.

Commercial shellfish-growing areas are monitored and harvesting is stopped when toxin levels make shellfish unsafe. This is why you’ll occasionally see us announce that our fresh mussels or oysters are temporarily unavailable. We’d much rather have nothing to sell for a little while than take any chances when it comes to food safety.

If you gather shellfish recreationally, always check the latest Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment warnings and harvesting regulations before collecting or eating anything from the coastline.

Why Farmed Mussels Are Such a Great Seafood Choice

Mussels are filter feeders, which means they obtain their food naturally from nutrients and microscopic organisms already present in the water. Unlike many other forms of aquaculture, they don’t need to be fed manufactured feed containing fishmeal or other marine ingredients.

Our locally farmed black mussels are grown on ropes suspended in the waters around Saldanha Bay. WWF-SASSI currently lists South African farmed black mussels grown using rope aquaculture as a Best Choice, making them a fantastic option when you’re looking for more sustainable seafood.

They’re local, delicious, quick to cook and wonderfully versatile. What’s not to love?

Our Favourite Way to Enjoy Them

Sometimes the simplest recipes really are the best. Gently fry some onion or shallots and garlic in a little butter, add a splash of white wine and let it bubble for a minute before adding your mussels. Cover the pot and steam until they’re cooked, then finish with fresh herbs and perhaps a little cream if you’re feeling indulgent.

Make sure you have plenty of good bread on the table because, let’s be honest, the sauce at the bottom of the bowl is often the best part!

Fresh mussels don’t need to be complicated. Start with a great quality product, keep the flavours simple and let the mussels do the rest.