Spring is almost upon us and when it comes to vegetable harvests we are in what is traditionally called the “Hunger gap”. This is where we are still using winter harvests and there is very little growth on new season vegetables.
So we are turning our attention to our oceans, we are an island after all and have some fantastic, sustainable seafood that is the envy of so many countries.
A favorite in FoodSpace is Mussels…
Really tasty, they also can be used in so many dishes or just on their own…
Try out this simple recipe: Mussels with beer & bacon
Ingredients
- Irish Rapeseed oil
- 100g of smoked bacon (cut into strips)
- 2 gloves of Irish garlic (thinly sliced)
- 300ml bottle of good Irish Wheat beer
- 1kg of fresh Irish mussels cleaned and bearded
- flat-leaf parsley
- Sourdough bread
Method
1 – Heat a spoon of rapeseed oil in a large pan. Add the bacon strips and cook until crisp.
2 – Stir in the garlic and cook for 2 minutes, then pour in the beer and bring to a simmer.
3 – Check the mussels and discard any that are damaged or don’t close when tapped.
4 – Tip in the mussels, put on a lid and cook until all the mussels have opened. (Discard any shells that stay closed).
5 – Gently shake the pot with the lid on to ensure all are cooked.
6 – Stir in the parsley and serve. Lovely with sourdough bread and Irish butter
