Cooking With Mussels

If you’re like most people, you don’t enjoy the feeling of sand and grit on your teeth. This problem is easily remedied by purging your mussels prior to cooking time. Even though most commercially available mussels have been pre-purged, I find that doing this yourself makes a difference.

1. Briefly rinse your mussels with cold water.
2. Place the mussels in a large bowl with cold water.
3. Dissolve about 1/3 cup of sea salt per gallon of water in the bowl.
4. Stir in a small amount of cornmeal.
5. Leave the setup in a cold place for about two hours.
6. Drain the mussels and rinse in cold water.

At this point you’re set to clean, de-beard and cook the mussels.