Conquering Mussels on the Grill

Curried Mussels and Shrimp, Corn & a Cold Beer

I used to be afraid of cooking mussels - or shellfish of any kind, really. It seems like such a thin line between a delicious dinner and spending the night violently ill, and I always felt it was better left to the experts to figure out how to stay on the good side of that line. But then we were out to dinner last summer and my youngest son decided he wanted to try one of my mussels - and he liked it!

Since their usual dinner fare is along the lines of macaroni and cheese or chicken tenders, I was ridiculously excited and decided it was finally time to tackle those mussels myself.

Here's a few tricks I've learned for buying and preparing easy, delicious, and most importantly - safe - mussels:

1. To make sure the mussels are fresh, the shells should be completely closed. Discard any broken or opened ones.
2. Transport them and store them in an open container, if possible, so they can breathe. Keep them in the refrigerator on a bed of ice until ready to use - and cook them the same day you buy them.
3. Soak mussels in a bowl filled with cold tap water for 20 minutes before cooking. This will help them release any sand or grit.
4. After soaking the mussels, scrub them with a vegetable brush to remove anything that may remain on the shell. Pull stringy "beard" off of any that may have it.
5. Count on about 1 lb. of mussels per person for a main course. 

So now that your mussels are ready to cook, how will you prepare them? There are countless delicious recipes out there, but here's one I really like. It's based on a recipe from Donna S. on Allrecipes.com for Grilled Mussels with Curry Butter and I added shrimp to mix things up a bit. And before you ask, no, the kids won't eat curried mussels, so I made theirs with just butter, lemon and parsley. Each serving was cooked in it's own individual foil packet, so it was super simple. I hope you enjoy!

Curried Mussels and Shrimp on the Grill
(Serves 4)
Ingredients:
2 lb. mussels, scrubbed
1 lb. large shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 bell pepper, diced (I used yellow)
1 tomato, diced (I used roma)
1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped
3 tbsp. butter, softened
1 tsp. curry powder
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. salt

Directions:
1. Preheat grill to medium high. Set out all ingredients listed above to make it easy to prepare each foil packet.
2. Make curry butter by mixing butter, curry powder, garlic, cumin and salt in small bowl. Set aside.
3. Get 4 large rectangles of foil and lay them out on the counter.
4. Divide mussels and shrimp evenly in center of each foil rectangle.
5. Top seafood with peppers, tomato and parsley. Add a few dots of curry butter to top of each packet.
6. Seal each foil packet by pulling two sides together and folding along top. Then scrunch (technical term) the sides to create a seal. It doesn't have to be pretty :).
7. Place foil packets on preheated grill and cook for 5-10 minutes until shrimp are pink and mussels have opened.
8. To serve, open foil packets carefully, preserving liquid in bottom which will be a combination of the melted butter, herbs, and juices. Pour each packet into it's own wide, shallow bowl and top with sliced lemon or lime and more fresh parsley.

The great thing about a recipe like this is how versatile it is. If you don't like the flavor of curry, pick another you do. Switch out peppers for zucchini. Throw in more tomatoes or onions. Mussels are relatively inexpensive (I've paid $3/pound at Whole Foods) and if you follow the simple rules above, they make a quick and delicious meal too!