1776. Rice Stuffed Mussels

Rice stuffed mussels are a Turkish street vendor food, and are so delicious. 

I steamed the mussels before stuffing then cooking for a while more.

Ingredients:

1.5 kg fresh mussels in the shell, cleaned

1 cup broth 

5 Tbsp olive oil

2 onions, finely chopped

1 clove garlic, chopped

1 cup tomatoes, chopped

1/4 cup  pine nuts

1 1/2 cup short grain rice

salt & pepper to taste

1/2 cup olive oil

Method:

With a stiff/wire brush clean the fresh mussels, to remove any weeds, sand and trim the beard. Discard any that have already opened.

Place mussels in a large pot with cup cups of already boiling water. Cover and steam until the shells open. Discard any that do not open. Put the mussels in a strainer to drain and reserve the liquid.

In a pan, heat olive oil over medium heat and sauté the chopped onions. When the onion softens and turns translucent, add the garlic, cook a minute, then add tomatoes, pine nuts and the washed and drained rice. Season with salt & pepper to taste. Stir several times and as soon as the mixture browns lightly, remove from heat. Allow the stuffing to cool enough to handle.

Stuff the already opened mussels with the mixture. Tightly tie with a kitchen string so the mixture won't fall out while cooking. Place the mussels in a wide shallow pan.

Add the broth to the shallow pan, 1/2 cup of water, 1/2 cup olive oil and cook (uncovered) on medium heat until the rice absorbs the liquid. Remove the strings & serve with a few lemon  wedges.

صحة و عافية