Mussel Escabeche
Photography Manja Wachsmuth.
While fish is used traditionally in an escabeche, mussels are equally delicious. Serve as a snack with plenty of grilled bread or as part of a shared lunch.
Serves: 6–8 as a starter
INGREDIENTS
2 kilograms mussels, scrubbed
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
Escabeche
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 fennel bulb, thinly sliced
1 carrot, thinly sliced
2 small bay leaves
2 cloves garlic, sliced
¼ teaspoon chilli flakes
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 tablespoon honey
1 cup white wine
zest and juice 1 orange
⅓ cup sherry vinegar or good red wine vinegar
To serve
grilled bread
METHOD
Put the mussels in a large saucepan with a splash of water. Cover tightly and cook over a high heat until the mussels have opened. Cool then remove the meat from the shell, checking for any small crabs. Discard the shells.
Escabeche: Heat the oil in a large sauté pan and add the onion, fennel, carrot, bay leaves, garlic, chilli and paprika. Cook until the vegetables are just starting to soften, but still a little firm.
Add the honey, wine, orange zest and juice and the vinegar. Simmer for 5 minutes then add the mussels. Remove from the heat.
Cool, then transfer to a bowl. Cover and chill for several hours, but preferably overnight, turning occasionally.
To serve: Stir in the parsley and serve with grilled bread.
Cook’s Tip: The escabeche will keep in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Keep up to date with
dish weekly recipes,
food news, and events.
Related Content
latest issue:
127
In Dream Escape, we journey from Japan and Morocco to Italy, India and beyond, sharing recipes inspired by travel, heritage and comfort. We celebrate the champions of the Outstanding Food Producer Awards, explore the stories and recipes of chefs shaped by their cultural roots, and warm up with everything from West African soups and slow-braised lamb to porchetta, butter chicken and beef noodle soup. Alongside destination menus, Scandinavian sweets and cosy pub classics, Chrisanne Terblanche shares her favourite street-side dining spots in Bangkok, while Yvonne Lorkin explores red wine varietals. This issue, we invite you to slow down, turn the pages and escape through food.