The peppered mussel it is one of the traditional Neapolitan dishes, simple to prepare and at the same time very tasty. It is a question of opening the mussels on the fire, and serving them with a sprinkling of pepper and with the liquid that they will have released during cooking. As with all recipes made of few ingredients, it is essential that the raw material is of great quality. And the raw material is mussels. How to choose them?

All types of mussels

The most famous are the Spanish, so called because they fish in the Atlantic and imported from the Iberian country; then there are those originating in the Mediterranean, up to 10 cm long, which live attached to rocks or submerged bodies. The so-called are also very valuable "Hairy mussels", because of their hair attached to the shell. They also recognize themselves because they are quite tiny (5 cm long) and have the inside of the purple-colored shell. All mussels must have, at the time of sale, an identification mark and alabel with the packing date and the minimum retention period. They must be enclosed in a retina and cannot be sold individually.

How to clean mussels

Once you have purchased the mussels, check that they are all well closed, with the shell intact. Throw those seeds open, could be damaged and cause intoxication. If it comes to farmed mussels, the cleaning phase should be fast enough. The mussels of rock, on the other hand, have shells on the surface of parasites which must be removed with a small knife. Eliminate then fine linen, the beard that keeps them tied to the rock, and rinse them in running water, rubbing them with one metal brush. Remember that, once cleaned, the mussels should be consumed within 12 hours.

How the mussel soup is prepared

At this point put your cleaned mussels in a large pan, cover with a lid and let them open one by one over low heat. After a few minutes, check that they are all open, throw those that remain closed, transfer them all to another container and filter the liquid they have released. In another pan, sauté a clove of garlic in a little oil and, when it is golden, add the mussels with their liquid. Cook for a few minutes and then turn off. Sprinkle with abundant black pepper, add some chopped leaves of parsley and serve your peppered mussel on oiled toasted bread and put in the oven.

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