Mussels

Mussels are a nuisance to clean, but that is no reason why they should be almost totally ignored by the British. Moules à la marinière dangles French delight at us from the fancier restaurant menus, but good English mussel stew, which is its equivalent, is rarely considered as a dish for even a meal at home, or even on holiday by the seaside, where the mussels are there for the picking.