Seafood expert Rick Stein: how to clean and prepare mussels for cooking

In this indispensable new video guide TV chef Rick Stein, Britain's best-loved seafood expert, shows you how to prepare mussels for cooking. With his vast knowledge of fish and shellfish, Rick has all the tips and skills you need to help you clean, prepare and steam mussels correctly. If you enjoyed our video then subscribe to our channel / thehappyfoodie
Follow us on Twitter / thehappyfoodie and Pinterest / happyfoodieukand 'Like' us on Facebook / thehappyfoodie
To get weekly recipe inspiration from top British chefs, including Nigella Lawson, Mary Berry, Yotam Ottolenghi and more, sign up for The Happy Foodie email thehappyfoodie.co.uk/sign-up-t...
And don’t forget to visit us at www.thehappyfoodie.co.uk

[@donmccleary3822]

thank you, can use this cooking tip this weekend

[@probablyprudence39]

Oh wow, sounds simple enough. Can't wait to try this. Thanks 😊

[@gee3883]

Rick is a national treasure

[@TrueBlueEG8]

Rick Stein is a mans cook, real earthy honest food.

[@mwmingram]

Thanks Rick. Hope you are well.

[@SoNaturelleWellnessChicago]

Love this!! I had a craving for mussels today and looking forward to cooking them tomorrow in white wine and butter with some aromatics.

[@adolfohernandez6134]

nice and simple 👌..thanks!

[@Wolfrunner650]

Very explanatory ♥️

[@CKcamkennedy]

Hey thanks Ricky!

[@ThexBorg]

Always enjoy Rick Stein

[@evelynesparza9477]

I didn’t check all my mussels today and man do I regret it🤪 my whole home smells! But that’s the beauty of cooking in a rush🥲

[@takogeleASH]

great amazing

[@shaunpreston3212]

We do mussel popcorn and scampi style! Very nice always hand picked from kernow very big and the best quality!👍🏴‍☠️

[@lannynoeljames9026]

Lovely 😍 thx u

[@gennarolombardi1067]

Never knew this until just recently but another reason why muscles are so good for you is because if you tear open the flesh and look inside their stomachs you will find big portions of green Algae because that is what they eat. And algae like Spirulina and Chlorella have the highest protein content for almost any vegetable

[@ALNlemtor]

i was almost about to comment , what about cleaning the stomach??? ok .

[@DerekDerekDerekDerekDerekDerek]

I take that out. That's not what makes them so nutritious.

[@guffroofing]

What a load of bollocks

[@taylorindustries]

dont do this

[@1N2themystic]

Hogwash.

[@nobodynowhere7163]

Rick Stein is the best!

[@juancalderon870]

Muy bien.

[@spongepoop3970]

Muscles from sea Surf is DELICIOUS. But I’ve never had a fresh muscle fresh from the ocean Edit: I also like the clams and shrimp from sea surf too!

[@Daniel-hn7nd]

thanks Rick

[@woxow]

loveitloveitloveitloveit

[@mishawdy]

Legend

[@jacedragon]

hi, im in the philippines, and most the beards are inside the shell.. is it ok to open the shell to debeard and clean it before cooking it?

[@marine6]

this is a great recipe to discourage people from eating mussels!

[@demekonrn]

He definitely convinced me not to when I was so gung ho on having them. What a bummer.

[@snipper1ie]

Why so?

[@placeboobshere5458]

Too much work?

[@shaunhumphreys6714]

really they are the quickest thing to prepare if you've got them from a fresh catch if you live on the coast, then there's no need to check them as rick did here.most people don't live by the sea, so they can only get fishmonger or supermarket ones, which will always have been frozen and defrosted. you can get these in shells or unshelled. same principle, you just need to chuck them in pan, put some liquid in there-water, olive oil, win, or a mixture of all three if you like, and cover, heat on full power,and they are ready in a few minutes. you can tell they are cooked simply by the shells having opened. its literally three minutes cooking time max on full heat. that makes it way quicker and easier than cooking meat. its pretty similar to most seafood and fish, which generally can be covered and steamed in a little of liquid in around three minutes. in fact you can even do it in the microwave, steam it. you put the mussels in a bowl, put in some water, wine, olive oil as the liquid, cover with a plate on top, and microwave it for three-five minutes on full, and you get the same effect. whether pan or microwave serve it with half a lemon's juice squeezed over it and a generous sprinkling of sea salt. they are so cheap, if on a budget then it works out that eating mussels is the cheapest way to get your protein.

[@omwong6150]

shaun humphreys thank you for your cooking tips👍👍👍😋😋😋

[@Joiedevivredesilives]

Rick is one of very few celebrity cooks who knows what he is talking off

[@lovefood7339]

Yum

[@whysosexy]

I used to watch all of your travel shows!

[@worldcitizeng6507]

I love all his BBC Mediterranean travel shows

[@whysosexy]

@@worldcitizeng6507 Same here! While watching it, I would have a feeling in the pit of my stomach of longing to travel. Now I live in Europe!

[@danyo10]

yeah

[@thekingsdale2899]

When he shook the pan 🤣🤣🤣

[@yaniquesainvil3]

Lol

[@QdaChosenOne23]

Yeah, he mangled that shit

[@mollies13]

I think I prefer half shell mussels thats buy in the fridge.

[@1N2themystic]

So if they are on ice, do you need to let them warm up a bit before they will close up. I just bought a lb of them and half of them seem unresponsive but they supposedly came in today and no foul smell at all.

[@keysofperception4377]

If the mussels are from a grocery store does the method for testing if they are still alive work out too?

[@zebra7462]

Yes of course, most of them are still alive. Discard the ones that don't close since that means they are dead.

[@docgoldi]

The mussels that i bought in the grocery store are already opened. Is it ok to eat them?

[@thehappyfoodie]

+docgoldi Hi you need to test them to be sure. Rick shows how to do this in the video. Enjoy your meal!

[@CapeTownTom]

yes you can. try a few out and see if they taste ok, but store bought are most probably safe. .

[@athing8523]

Mussels with homemade wine hit diff somehow. A good white usually

[@KT-dj4iy]

What about mussels that are already closed (prior to cooking), but which float on the surface of the cold water? Should those be discarded? Or is it appropriate to keep them in until cooked and only throw them away if they are still closed at that point?

[@tonyhudson8698]

Those mussels are OK to eat, they are still alive, they have trapped air in the shell , that's all..

[@lashaa5]

Can you eat the ones that don't close.I bought some in a garlic sauce in a bag is it okay.will I get sick

[@zebra7462]

Don't do that. You're not gonna die but you can get sick.

[@iSTAYuGO]

Mmm, i go now collect some shells from the stream not far away ...

[@Antonio-hr8ej]

Well I fucked off to the book shop and learned how to cook a mussel 😂😂😂 Yyyuuuuuuehhh!

[@loveakeela6108]

So basically I can use whatever season I want and steam them I bought some precooked from Walmart

[@CamarriaVlogs]

Love Akeela lmao I just bought some from Walmart to trying to figure out how to Cooke then

[@dajackson5]

Same 😂😂 and I’m trying to figure out how to cook them

[@thebob3712]

why would you steam pre-cooked mussels? they are already cooked, hence pre-cooked, just leave them outside in the sun for a few hours then add whatever won't burn your ass when you are sitting on the toilet, if you make it that far, I'd avoid hot chilli

[@zvezdae3117]

So when we buy mussels at the grocerie store they're still alive? Had no clue.. If anyone could confirm that to me I would really appreciate 😊

[@sonchu7950]

Yes if they close up

[@Missladybee_]

Yes

[@ozdaawg]

Yes if they are "fresh", as in not frozen or brined.

[@mjh5437]

Spend 4 minutes of your precious time watching this vid and you might actually learn something .

[@zvezdae3117]

MJ H if I had not watch the video, I would not be confused if they are alive when we purchase them now would I... no need to be condescending

[@winemomma2689]

Just chuck them in there and break those shells.

[@rosshill9469]

In my experience live mussels contain seawater which is expelled when they are cooked. This water is very salty and must be discarded.

[@nicholathompson6134]

Double Cream?

[@robbobcat7286]

love this cuts out all the BS thanks

[@benmcdadestroud]

What happened to the plastic bag method to shake mussels clean?

[@tomgauntlestrange]

is it just me or did he discard a mussle near the end right after saying if you find a bad one you might as well throw the lot away if one is bad

[@sonchu7950]

He was referring to when you accidentally cook a bad one with the good ones it taint the flavor of the whole batch. If they were bought that way and there's a few dead one, that's okay just discard it and your batch is fine. Only when cooked it make the whole batch smelly

[@mollies13]

What if all of my clam are dead from costco bought? Literally there all floating in air of cold water, sign of dead clam. is still safe to eat em??? Thought there shell are not open wide

[@habibmate8466]

Mai Va Lee you might have bought pre cooked mussels, as I have made that mistake before and thought they were dead 💀 lol

[@mollies13]

@@habibmate8466 Nice

[@mollies13]

@@habibmate8466 I think I prefer half shelf mussel safer from zealand product. Still great taste all you have to is clean the back shell and your prepare to cook em.

[@mo3ath1000]

Bruh where's the seasoning?

[@rachelm7525]

Born On Earth they probably don't need salt, as they're farmed in the sea, pepper might overpower the delicate flavour, little bit of onion and parsley - don't need much else !😋

[@hollythedopestress5212]

Rachel M lmaooooo

[@evanisbored5540]

r/ woooooosh @Rachel M

[@toolofbordem]

He explains that at the end, try watching the whole video before you jump the gun. He was just explaining how to steam them.

[@worldcitizeng6507]

the mussels are salty itself. In Izmir Turkey, I saw vendor selling it by the beach on a tray, they just squeeze lemon juice and eat it raw, but those were freshly catch mussels

[@zenaalg7610]

Omg the accent

[@christinedormer9714]

Call those muscles, come to New Zealand and see a real muscle . About 3times the Size of those you had . Cheers, Christine Dormer

[@ianbuchan1793]

Christine Dormer who cares !!

[@snipper1ie]

We have muscles like yours here, they're called steaks

[@ozdaawg]

In your pants? Different Mussel

[@jeaninempanzone7851]

I use a fork 🍴

[@bernadethrobles752]

what

[@miggymoo4482]

or you can leave them in water and the ones that are alive open up

[@Eatadick420]

Yes but if they're open, you cant cook them

[@ozdaawg]

Along with the dead ones that are open?

[@CameronE2023]

No seasoning and cooked in water? This guy doesnt know what flavour is.

[@oscarreinsfield4547]

Cameron Edmonds there salty enough from the salt water and what’s the point of having them if you can’t taste the actual mussel it self You don’t know what shellfish and food is

[@TommyTucker091]

Cameron Edmonds He was just showing you how to cook muscles. He did point out where you would add other ingredients like shallots, wine, garlic butter etc. Using the liquor for sauce. This was just to show how to cook muscles basic.

[@1N2themystic]

Personally I prefer to let the natural flavors of most seafood shine on their own. Especially lobster or king crab, I don't usually even mess with a good cut of steak other than salt. Why mess with perfection? I do use mussels and such in Marinara and on pizza but I still don't like to season heavily if they are the star of the show.

[@ianbuchan1793]

Cameron Edmonds more than you do sunshine

[@wormholetimes9839]

Just eat the dead Mussels. Don't you buy dead fish?

[@shanedoe3462]

Fish aren't molluscs. Ever heard of tainted clams killing people? Same thing. Plus, like he said, the smell is horrific.

[@ianbuchan1793]

Wormhole Times sorry it doesn’t work like that with muscles if they are dead they will smell and if you eat those they could kill you so be my guest see how clever you are

[@ozdaawg]

Seen an episode of Rick where he said something like "if they don't stink, just throw them in the pot, People say to discard the open ones, but I have never had a problem", so there you go!

[@janhakanolsson1370]

i now its late but the mussels your bought was ded 😠

[@peppiranha4800]

Obviously, also please learn how to spell...

[@ptahclips]

The fuzzy ghost curiosly glow because half-brother unpredictably injure pro a tearful barometer. prickly, faithful wednesday

[@it1988a]

What makes this moonbat an "Expert"???

[@fredericp64]

This was a terrible video to watch with my sleeping baby on me !! Great tips though!

[@markiacarey7352]

l don't like them

[@ianbuchan1793]

markia carey nobody is asking you to eat them now are they ?

[@wasabikimchi7891]

I dont like a lot of things and one of them is people like you.