Winter Mussel Broth with Crispy Courgette Chips

Winter Mussel Broth with Crispy Courgette Chips

Mussels are a delicious and simple dish to pull together, great if you have a few people to feed and even better if you’re wanting to keep it healthy. Mussels are packed full of protein, iron and vitamin C so perfect for the time of year when we’re all on a health kick. Mussels can be bought for between £3-£6 a kilo so a great option for those on a budget. Treat yourself with a small side of courgette chips and this will match up to any moules frites you’ll get out at a restaurant.

Feeds 4-6

Preparation Time – 10 minutes

Cooking Time – 10 minutes

Mussel Broth Ingredients –

Glug of rapeseed oil

1 White onion- Diced

3 Cloves of garlic – Crushed and roughly chopped

2 Star anise

Glass of white wine

1 Pint of vegetable stock

1kg Live Mussels (sustainably sourced) – Debearded and cleaned

½ Courgette - Peeled

2 Handfuls of watercress - Thoroughly washed first

Handful of parsley – Roughly chopped

1 spring onion – Finely chopped

Crispy Courgette Chips –

1 ½ Courgettes – Cut into thin chips (no need to peel)

2 Eggs – Beaten

50g Parmesan – Finely grated

Handful of parsley – Finely chopped

A generous sprinkle of freshly ground black pepper

Generous sprinkle of white pepper

Instructions –

Preheat the oven to 190 degree Celsius and start by preparing the courgette chips. Chop the courgettes into regular chip sized strips then set to one side. Whisk the two eggs in a bowl and again set to one side. Combine the grated parmesan with the chopped parsley and seasoning . Dip each courgette chip into the egg then the Parmesan, each chip should be lightly coated then placed on parchment paper or a non stick baking tray before being placed in the oven to cook for around 10-12 minutes or until golden.

For the mussels, start by adding the diced onion, garlic and star anise to a glug of rapeseed oil and allow to sweat for a few minutes, pour in a glass of last nights white wine and allow to simmer over a medium heat for 3-4 minutes before adding in the vegetable stock.  Have a taste of the broth to make sure you don’t need to adjust the seasoning…vegetable stock can be quite salty. Prepare the mussels by pulling off any crusty /beardy bits, rinse thoroughly then get rid of any broken shells, add to the vegetable broth and cover. Allow the mussels to cook/steam for 3-4 minutes until all shells have opened, give the pan a shake to ensure all mussels are coated in the broth. Sprinkle over the parsley, watercress, courgette shavings and spring onions and serve straight from the dish or plate up individually.