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Scrubbing And Soaking Mussels

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France

Known as a French recipe, with similar versions prepared across other nations.

Ingredients 4 ingredients

  1. Mussels
  2. 2 quarts of water
  3. 14 cup of flour
  4. Must
Contains GlutenMolluscs Read from the ingredients, not verified. Check labels.

Possible health benefits

General information, not medical advice.

  1. Flour Source of phosphorus · Source of copper · Source of manganese · +1

    Source of phosphorus · 106 mg per 100 g, 15% of the reference intake per 100 g

    • Phosphorus contributes to normal energy-yielding metabolism.
    • Phosphorus contributes to normal function of cell membranes.
    • Phosphorus contributes to the maintenance of normal bones.
    1 more authorised claims
    • Phosphorus contributes to the maintenance of normal teeth.

    Phosphorus is a mineral contained in each cell in our body. Most phosphorus is in the bones and teeth, and some is in your genes. NIH fact sheet

    Source of copper · 0.2 mg per 100 g, 17% of the reference intake per 100 g

    • Copper contributes to maintenance of normal connective tissues.
    • Copper contributes to normal energy-yielding metabolism.
    • Copper contributes to normal functioning of the nervous system.
    5 more authorised claims
    • Copper contributes to normal hair pigmentation.
    • Copper contributes to normal iron transport in the body.
    • Copper contributes to normal skin pigmentation.
    • Copper contributes to the normal function of the immune system.
    • Copper contributes to the protection of cells from oxidative stress.

    Copper is a mineral that you need to stay healthy. Your body uses copper to carry out many important functions, including making energy, connective tissues, and blood vessels. NIH fact sheet

    Source of manganese · 0.6 mg per 100 g, 28% of the reference intake per 100 g

    • Manganese contributes to normal energy-yielding metabolism.
    • Manganese contributes to the maintenance of normal bones.
    • Manganese contributes to the normal formation of connective tissue.
    1 more authorised claims
    • Manganese contributes to the protection of cells from oxidative stress.

    Manganese is a mineral that your body needs to stay healthy. Your body uses manganese to make energy and protect your cells from damage. NIH fact sheet

    Source of selenium · 10 µg per 100 g, 19% of the reference intake per 100 g

    • Selenium contributes to normal spermatogenesis.
    • Selenium contributes to the maintenance of normal hair.
    • Selenium contributes to the maintenance of normal nails.
    3 more authorised claims
    • Selenium contributes to the normal function of the immune system.
    • Selenium contributes to the normal thyroid function.
    • Selenium contributes to the protection of cells from oxidative stress.

    Selenium is a nutrient that the body needs to stay healthy. Your thyroid gland needs selenium to produce hormones and function properly. NIH fact sheet

    Nutrients per 100 g of “Flour, 00”, USDA FoodData Central.

Claims: EU Register of health claims (Regulation (EU) No 432/2012, © European Union, CC BY 4.0), shown only where the ingredient meets the claim's conditions (Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006). Nutrients: USDA FoodData Central (CC0). Facts: NIH Office of Dietary Supplements (public domain).

Cook safely

Keep children and pets away from the hob and the oven, and keep oven gloves and a lid within reach.

  • Boiling water and steam. Turn pan handles inward, away from the edge of the hob. Lift lids away from you, and pour hot water away from your body: steam burns too.
  • Sharp knives. Cut on a board that doesn't slip (a damp cloth under it helps), and curl the fingers of the hand that holds the food.

Method

  1. Before they can be cooked, mussels must have a rather long and careful cleaning process to remove all possible sand from their interiors, and to rid the shells of any slime and dirt which might spoil the excellent juices they render as they steam open.
  2. Discard any mussels that are not firmly closed, or which feel lighter in weight than the rest.
  3. Discard also any too-heavy mussels, as they may be nothing but sand enclosed between two mussel shells.
  4. Scrub each mussel very clean with a rough brush under running water.
  5. Then with a small knife, scrape off the tuft of hairs, or beard, which protrudes from between one side of the closed shell halves.
  6. Set the mussels in a basin or bucket of fresh water for an hour or two so they will disgorge their sand and also lose a bit of their saltiness.
  7. Lift the mussels out of the water into a colander, wash and drain them again, and they are ready to cook.
  8. Note: Some cooks add flour to the soaking water on the theory that while the mussels eat the flour and become fatter and more succulent, they are at the same time disgorging their sand more thoroughly.
  9. Use 14 cup of flour for each 2 quarts of water, beating the flour and a bit of water with a whip first, to mix it thoroughly.
  10. Then, after soaking the mussels, lift them into a colander, and rinse them in cold water.

Plating

Cookware for this recipe

  • Whisk
  • Chef's knife
  • Colander