How to buy and HOw to Prepare Mussels
Kamilche mussels are delivered fresh, live and on ice. As with any live shellfish, a little care will go a long ways to ensuring an excellent dining experience.
If you are unlikely to cook them immediately:
Keep the mussels in a fridge or cooler, covered with a damp cloth.
It’s best to store them in a colander or container that drains to a plate or bowl. In this way the mussels will stay in tip-top shape for four or five days.
Never store them immersed in water
The next thing to know is that the mussels have a “beard” or byssal threads, the fibrous part which the animal uses to attach to rocks, ropes or other fixed objects.
We don’t remove these before delivery because doing so would risk damaging the living mussel while in storage.
All you need to do is trim it off with a knife or pull off with your fingers and the mussels are ready to go.
Rinse the shells in freshwater and they are ready for the cooking pot.
Steam them in a little wine or water for just a few minutes until open.
If you like steamed clams or cockles you are sure to love mussels, too!
Kamilche Shellfish — The Best and the Freshest
Mussels
Our species is Mytilus galloprovinciallis, or the Mediterranean mussel, common throughout Europe, California and the Pacific Northwest. In the nutrient-rich waters of South Puget Sound, with swift currents and an abundant food supply, the mussels grow to maturity quickly and maintain a tender sweet, juicy meat throughout most of the year. If you appreciate the taste of Manila clams you’ll love these mussels for their sweet, full-bodied taste.
Pacific Oysters: Extra small and small
These Pacific oysters are grown in Hammersley Inlet in South Puget Sound, an area known for its exceptional shellfish beds. Our neighbors and colleagues at Carbajal Oyster Company grow the oysters in Hammersley Inlet. The oyster flavor is more sweet than salty, with a moderately meaty texture. This oyster, with its mild-flavored crispness, is an ideal one for the first-time oyster consumer… or the connoisseur! The Extra smalls are generally 2-3 inches in diameter, and deep-cupped. The smalls are generally 3-4 inches in diameter, and deep-cupped.
manila clAMs
Manila Clams grown in Oyster Bay, Totten Inlet, Puget Sound, WA by our friends and neighbors at the Olympia Oyster Co. Harvested fresh to order, they are great for dishes like Clams Casino, in pastas and seafood chowders. The clams are purged before we ship to minimize grit in the shells. The size is 18-20 to the pound (i.e.1.5-2"in shell length) and the clams are in excellent condition from autumn through mid-summer.
Serving these for dinner will make your family or guests as happy as.... well you get the point!
Our favorite Recipe to SHare.
Ingredients
2 cloves of garlic, pressed or minced (or small shallot, chopped)
2 tablespoons olive oil, butter or margarine
1 tablespoon parsley, chopped
½ cup dry white wine
2 lbs live Mediterranean mussels in shells
2 green onions, chopped
Scrub mussels lightly and pull off beards. Set aside. Saute garlic or shallot in oil or butter in medium size fry pan.
Heat wine in large pot until it just reaches boiling point. Add mussels and cook, covered, for about seven minutes. At the four minute mark open the pot and give the mussels a quick stir to promote even cooking. Return lid to pot.
When all mussels have cooked and shells popped open remove from heat. Strain some of the liquid (wine plus mussel cooking liquid) into the garlic and oil pan.
Add cooked mussels to large serving bowl or dish and pour garlic/wine/ liquid mixture over the top. Sprinkle with green onions and parsley. Serve and acknowledge the smiles!
The Ideal Health Food
If you are looking for value for your food dollar, consider mussels. Pound for pound, they are far more economical than clams or oysters. Not that we’re knocking our shellfish cousins! Totten Inlet is home to some of the best world class Pacific oysters and Manila clams around. Try them all, and then you decide!
Besides simple to prepare and fun to eat, mussels are the perfect health food. They are high in protein and minerals such as calcium and iron, as well as low in calories and fat. As we all know, Omega-3s are critical in a healthy diet – mussels contain more than any other shellfish.
