I miss and remember our Odessa evenings at summer cottage in the Fountain neighbourhood… Do you remember how we cooked mussels “Greek style”, but with Odessa twist? This is a simple recipe for Odessa ‘country’ food for a large and fun company. All that still needs to be put on the table, except for a huge cauldron of mussels, is fresh bread with a crispy crust and ice-cold white wine in a misted glass decanter.
I miss and remember our Odessa evenings at summer cottage in the Fountain neighbourhood… Do you remember how we cooked mussels “Greek style”, but with Odessa twist? This is a simple recipe for Odessa ‘country’ food for a large and fun company. All that still needs to be put on the table, except for a huge cauldron of mussels, is fresh bread with a crispy crust and ice-cold white wine in a misted glass decanter.- Prep time: 20 minutes
- Cook time: 25 minutes
- Serves: 4-6
- Difficulty: easy
- Course: main course
- Cookware: large thick bottom frying pan or cauldron
- Cuisine: Odessa
Ingredients
- 3 kg large Black Sea mussels in shells
- 3 tomatoes, roughly chopped
- 3 shallots, finely chopped
- 6 cloves of garlic, peeled and grated
- 3 bell peppers, peeled and sliced
- 400 ml white wine, e.g. Sukholimanske Kolonist
- 1 lemon, cut into large slices
- 400 g sheep cheese
- 1 medium bunch of parsley, finely chopped
- 6 tbsp sunflower oil
- freshly ground black pepper
Cooking method
Step 1
If the mussels are just collected and not cleaned yet for cooking, then remove any gnarls and rip away the ‘beard’ (water plant).
Step 2
Heat oil in a large frying pan or cauldron. Fry the onion, add bell pepper. Simmer until pepper is tender.
Step 3
Add mussels and wine. Cover and wait until the mussels begin to open. Then add garlic, tomatoes and stir.
Step 4
Crumble the cheese with your hands and add to the mussels. Stir and cover. When the cheese becomes soft (attention, don’t let it melt completely), remove the lid, add parsley and black pepper. Serve the mussels with lemon slices.
My tips and tricks:
Serve the mussels right in the cauldron so that they don’t cool down for as long as possible. And in any case, don’t pour out the mussel sauce – it’s delicious. It can be eaten as a ‘soup’ with bread, or try it the way they eat in Odessa: drink it, scooping with mussel shells straight from the cauldron.
Alla Plachkova’s wine recommendations:
I recommend white wine Sukholimanske Kolonist as a pairing for our mussels. Produced from Ukrainian grape variety – Sukholymanskyi bilyi. Refreshing wine of light golden colour shows a fruity aroma with notes of white plum and pear, light notes of nutmeg. Has a harmonious taste with notes of melon, white plum and pleasant acidity in the aftertaste. This wine pairs well with seafood, light cheeses, and salads, and can also become an aperitif for a variety of dishes. Serving temperature: from +8 to +10°С.
- 3 kg large Black Sea mussels in shells
- 3 tomatoes, roughly chopped
- 3 shallots, finely chopped
- 6 cloves of garlic, peeled and grated
- 3 bell peppers, peeled and sliced
- 400 ml white wine, e.g. Sukholimanske Kolonist
- 1 lemon, cut into large slices
- 400 g sheep cheese
- 1 medium bunch of parsley, finely chopped
- 6 tbsp sunflower oil
- freshly ground black pepper
- If the mussels are just collected and not cleaned yet for cooking, then remove any gnarls and rip away the ‘beard’ (water plant).
- Heat oil in a large frying pan or cauldron. Fry the onion, add bell pepper. Simmer until pepper is tender.
- Add mussels and wine. Cover and wait until the mussels begin to open. Then add garlic, tomatoes and stir.
- Crumble the cheese with your hands and add to the mussels. Stir and cover. When the cheese becomes soft (attention, don’t let it melt completely), remove the lid, add parsley and black pepper. Serve the mussels with lemon slices.