Mussels, fennel and wine

Name: Mussels, fennel and wine
Ingredients: bread, to serve (I like a big, crunchy baguette); grated zest of ½ unwaxed lemon and a spritz of the juice; 25 g butter; sea salt (optional) and freshly ground black pepper; 1 garlic clove, thinly sliced; 1 shallot, finely chopped; 50–75 ml dry white wine; 1 small bay leaf; 1 tbsp vegetable oil; 500 g mussels, rinsed under cold running water and scrubbed; 1 fennel bulb, finely chopped (reserve the fennel fronds to garnish at the end)

Preparation info

Difficulty
Medium

Appears in

Solo

By Signe Johansen

Published 2018

About

One of the most economical types of seafood you can eat, mussels are sometimes a forgotten source of joy for solo cooks. More’s the pity as they’re plentiful and nutritious. Although this is a fast dish to cook, be aware that mussels require a little attention beforehand.

Ingredients

500 g mussels, rinsed under cold running water and scrubbed
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1

Fish course
Pescatarian

Method

Tap any mussels with open shells. If they remain open after a few minutes, discard them. To remove the ‘beard’ that pokes out of the shell, hold the mussel and yank the beard out in the direction of the mussel’s hinge. Place the mussels in a bowl of cold water for an hour or so.

Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over a low-medium heat, add the fennel and fry for 5 minutes, then add the