This is the season for shellfish. Try mussels and clams cooked fresh with spelt or bacon and breadcrumbs, for a dramatic and atmospheric supper
I come home from the fishmonger with two little net bags of shellfish. A yellow one full of clams and a large red one with blue-shelled mussels. The mussels, small and sweet, will be stuffed with crumbs and whatever herbs are in the fridge. The clams will take pride of place in a paella-style dish in which I am using pearled spelt instead of rice, the grains puffing up with the juice from the shellfish.
On a freezing winter's day I don't want to be cleaning shellfish in cold, running water, and I do it thoroughly but quickly. I am impatient, giving each open mussel a swift knock on the side of the sink and if they don't close almost instantly, I assume they are dead and hurl them into the bin. But I find only one who is doubtful, the rest are sound, their shells without a crack or a chip and tightly closed. They have a deep smell of the sea about them, and are sparkling with freshness.
Mussels that are to be stuffed can be cooked in two ways. You can either prize off the top shell and stuff them raw or cook them briefly, removing them from the pot the second they are ready. I go for the second option and, although, this means cooking them twice, both are brief, leaving the shellfish still soft, plump and juicy. Best of all, we get the chance to suck the mussel from its shell, with a few aniseed herbs and the soft crunch of toasted crumbs.
The spelt "paella" (I use the word loosely) will, if I get my way, come complete with the crust that traditionally forms on the base of the pan – the prized pan-stickings. This hidden treat will only form if I cook the spelt at the right temperature. So I keep the heat moderately high and resist the temptation to stir and meddle. It's a fairly cheap dish, and a happy ending for the bags of shellfish I have just bought home.
*Pearled spelt with mussels and clams*
Pearled spelt is my choice for this, but you can use pearl barley instead, though it may take a little longer to cook. Don't be tempted to continually stir, as you would with a risotto. You don't want a creamy or soupy result but a slightly nutty one, where the grains are still separate. Ideally, a crisp layer of spelt will appear on the bottom, and it will only do that if left alone and allowed to form. In a classic paella, this layer, the "socarrat" or "crocante" depending on whose mother you listen to, is an essential part of the dish. And it will, with a bit of luck and no meddling, appear here, too.
Serves 4
*onion *1, large
*groundnut or olive oil *3 tbsp
*pearled spelt *250g* *
*white vermouth *such as Noilly Prat,* *4 tbsp
*fish or chicken stock *600-700ml, hot
*mussels *500g
*clams *500g
*parsley* chopped, a* *small handful
Peel and finely chop the onion, then let it soften with the oil in a paella pan over a low to moderate heat. Stir in the vermouth, boil briefly, then add the pearled spelt, pour in the hot stock, season with salt and black pepper, stir and leave at a good simmer (a little nearer to boiling than you might for a risotto). Cover and leave for 25-30 minutes until the liquid has been almost entirely absorbed.
Wash and prepare the shellfish, discarding chipped shells or those that do not close when tapped firmly against the sink.
Remove the lid from the spelt, taking care not to disturb the baked-on grains at the bottom, then add the cleaned shellfish over the surface. Cover with a lid or a dome of kitchen foil, then cook at a high heat for 3-4 minutes until the shells open. Add the chopped parsley and serve, taking care to give everyone some of the lightly crisp, baked-on grains at the bottom.
*Mussels with herbs, crumbs and bacon*
If you want to stuff your mussels raw, snap off the top shell by prizing it with a small knife.
Serves 3-4
*mussels* 500g
*baguette *or other light, white bread, 50g
*flat-leaf parsley* 10g
*tarragon* 5g
*basil* 10g
*smoked streaky* *bacon* 4 rashers
*olive oil* a little
Scrub the mussels in cold water, discarding any whose shells do not close when tapped firmly on the sink. Any that are cracked or broken should be thrown away, too.
Put the mussels in a large pan over a high heat with a few tablespoons of water, cover tightly with a lid and leave to cook for a minute or two in their own steam. They are cooked as soon as their shells are open. Remove the mussels from the pan with a draining spoon, then break off the top shell from each mussel. Lay the full halves cosily on a baking sheet. If they fall over, you can stabilise them on a bed of salt, though I have never found it necessary.
Tear the bread into small pieces and blitz to fine breadcrumbs in a food processor. Pull the leaves off the parsley stalks and add them to the crumbs, then do the same with the tarragon. Add the basil leaves and stems and process briefly until you have soft, green crumbs. You will need neither salt nor pepper.
Finely chop the bacon and fry until crisp in a nonstick pan, then add to the breadcrumbs. Spoon the crumb mixture on top of the mussels, then pour over the bacon fat from the pan and just enough olive oil to moisten the crumbs.
Heat an overhead grill. Cook the mussels for a couple of minutes, watching carefully until they are crisp and golden. Eat immediately.
Email Nigel at nigel.slater@observer.co.uk. Follow Nigel on Twitter @NigelSlater Reported by guardian.co.uk 23 hours ago.
I come home from the fishmonger with two little net bags of shellfish. A yellow one full of clams and a large red one with blue-shelled mussels. The mussels, small and sweet, will be stuffed with crumbs and whatever herbs are in the fridge. The clams will take pride of place in a paella-style dish in which I am using pearled spelt instead of rice, the grains puffing up with the juice from the shellfish.
On a freezing winter's day I don't want to be cleaning shellfish in cold, running water, and I do it thoroughly but quickly. I am impatient, giving each open mussel a swift knock on the side of the sink and if they don't close almost instantly, I assume they are dead and hurl them into the bin. But I find only one who is doubtful, the rest are sound, their shells without a crack or a chip and tightly closed. They have a deep smell of the sea about them, and are sparkling with freshness.
Mussels that are to be stuffed can be cooked in two ways. You can either prize off the top shell and stuff them raw or cook them briefly, removing them from the pot the second they are ready. I go for the second option and, although, this means cooking them twice, both are brief, leaving the shellfish still soft, plump and juicy. Best of all, we get the chance to suck the mussel from its shell, with a few aniseed herbs and the soft crunch of toasted crumbs.
The spelt "paella" (I use the word loosely) will, if I get my way, come complete with the crust that traditionally forms on the base of the pan – the prized pan-stickings. This hidden treat will only form if I cook the spelt at the right temperature. So I keep the heat moderately high and resist the temptation to stir and meddle. It's a fairly cheap dish, and a happy ending for the bags of shellfish I have just bought home.
*Pearled spelt with mussels and clams*
Pearled spelt is my choice for this, but you can use pearl barley instead, though it may take a little longer to cook. Don't be tempted to continually stir, as you would with a risotto. You don't want a creamy or soupy result but a slightly nutty one, where the grains are still separate. Ideally, a crisp layer of spelt will appear on the bottom, and it will only do that if left alone and allowed to form. In a classic paella, this layer, the "socarrat" or "crocante" depending on whose mother you listen to, is an essential part of the dish. And it will, with a bit of luck and no meddling, appear here, too.
Serves 4
*onion *1, large
*groundnut or olive oil *3 tbsp
*pearled spelt *250g* *
*white vermouth *such as Noilly Prat,* *4 tbsp
*fish or chicken stock *600-700ml, hot
*mussels *500g
*clams *500g
*parsley* chopped, a* *small handful
Peel and finely chop the onion, then let it soften with the oil in a paella pan over a low to moderate heat. Stir in the vermouth, boil briefly, then add the pearled spelt, pour in the hot stock, season with salt and black pepper, stir and leave at a good simmer (a little nearer to boiling than you might for a risotto). Cover and leave for 25-30 minutes until the liquid has been almost entirely absorbed.
Wash and prepare the shellfish, discarding chipped shells or those that do not close when tapped firmly against the sink.
Remove the lid from the spelt, taking care not to disturb the baked-on grains at the bottom, then add the cleaned shellfish over the surface. Cover with a lid or a dome of kitchen foil, then cook at a high heat for 3-4 minutes until the shells open. Add the chopped parsley and serve, taking care to give everyone some of the lightly crisp, baked-on grains at the bottom.
*Mussels with herbs, crumbs and bacon*
If you want to stuff your mussels raw, snap off the top shell by prizing it with a small knife.
Serves 3-4
*mussels* 500g
*baguette *or other light, white bread, 50g
*flat-leaf parsley* 10g
*tarragon* 5g
*basil* 10g
*smoked streaky* *bacon* 4 rashers
*olive oil* a little
Scrub the mussels in cold water, discarding any whose shells do not close when tapped firmly on the sink. Any that are cracked or broken should be thrown away, too.
Put the mussels in a large pan over a high heat with a few tablespoons of water, cover tightly with a lid and leave to cook for a minute or two in their own steam. They are cooked as soon as their shells are open. Remove the mussels from the pan with a draining spoon, then break off the top shell from each mussel. Lay the full halves cosily on a baking sheet. If they fall over, you can stabilise them on a bed of salt, though I have never found it necessary.
Tear the bread into small pieces and blitz to fine breadcrumbs in a food processor. Pull the leaves off the parsley stalks and add them to the crumbs, then do the same with the tarragon. Add the basil leaves and stems and process briefly until you have soft, green crumbs. You will need neither salt nor pepper.
Finely chop the bacon and fry until crisp in a nonstick pan, then add to the breadcrumbs. Spoon the crumb mixture on top of the mussels, then pour over the bacon fat from the pan and just enough olive oil to moisten the crumbs.
Heat an overhead grill. Cook the mussels for a couple of minutes, watching carefully until they are crisp and golden. Eat immediately.
Email Nigel at nigel.slater@observer.co.uk. Follow Nigel on Twitter @NigelSlater Reported by guardian.co.uk 23 hours ago.