It's easy to get confused when trying to figure out how to eat mussels. Since they are mainly served with shells, we often wonder how to bring the edible part to the mouth and what to do with empty shells. Despite being a delicious food, eating them can be challenging. You can use your fingers, fork or knife: it is not essential to finish the meal with your fingers all sticky and the shirt stained with sauce. If you want to know the etiquette to follow when eating mussels, to be safe and calm when ordering them at the restaurant, read the instructions below.
Steps
Method 1 of 2: At the restaurant
Step 1. Hold the shell in your hand (usually in the dominant one)
Mussels can be served in a pan, in broth or as a dressing for a spaghetti dish. Take the mussel by grasping it at the base of the shell, with the opening facing out.
Step 2. Remove the clam with a fork
With your free hand, gently detach the mollusk from the valve in which it resides. You will notice that the mussel is still partially attached to the bottom of the shell, so be prepared to use your fork to peel it off.
Take the shellfish gently with a fork and slowly pull it out of the valve. Be careful not to hurt your hand with the fork tines
Step 3. Prepare the first bite
If it's a broth dish, transfer the clam from the fork to the spoon and dip it into the broth. On the other hand, if it's a plate of spaghetti with seafood, take a forkful of pasta along with the shellfish. Eat it in one bite.
- If the mussels are being served alone, they will probably give you a separate bowl of finger. In this case, eating with your hands is perfectly acceptable.
- If it is mussel broth, you can also eat the shellfish with a fork and accompany it with a spoonful of broth.
Step 4. Dispose of the shell
They usually bring a separate bowl or plate to the table for the shells. If not, put them back on your plate or serving bowl, never in a common tray.
In the United States, for example, it is generally considered appropriate to discard the shell and continue to use the fork to extract the other mussels
Step 5. Finish the dish
If it is broth, you can consume it in spoonfuls or dip a piece of bread in it for a delicious bite, possibly picking it up with a spoon. However, avoid soaking several pieces of bread at a time.
- If it's a seafood spaghetti dish, you can alternate between a bite of pasta and a bite of mussels.
- Consume one shellfish at a time, until you finish the dish.
Method 2 of 2: In an Informal Context
Step 1. Eat the mussels straight from the shell
If it is an informal lunch, it is considered acceptable to put a little broth in the shell and sip its contents, perhaps first removing the shellfish with a fork.
A plate of mussels generally comes with a little sauce inside each valve, definitely delicious. Sip a mussel directly from the shell allows you to fully enjoy the sauce that accompanies it
Step 2. Separate the two shells and use the empty one as a spoon
If in the United States the etiquette at the table requires eating mussels with a fork, at least in refined restaurants, in other countries, such as France, it is permissible to use one of the two valves to extract the mollusk. Use it as a spoon and take out the shellfish.
Step 3. Use the empty shell like tweezers
Take an empty shell from the back and hold it with the open side facing out. Apply light pressure on the shells to open and close them as if they were tweezers and use them to grasp the other shells.
Step 4. Remove all the shellfish from their shells and only then start eating them
This system is generally considered unusual, but in many contexts it is acceptable to take out all the shellfish at the start of the meal and consume them later.
Especially if it is a mussel broth and you have little space available, it can be a convenient solution
Advice
- Squeeze some fresh lemon (or lime) juice over the mussels to give the dish a gourmet touch.
- Make a sauce made from butter, white wine and lemon juice and pour it over the mussels. Sprinkle them with feta cheese flakes, use a slice of good homemade bread for the "scarpetta" and you will feel in seventh heaven.
- Have plenty of napkins on hand.
Warnings
- Once cooked, the mussels must be rigorously opened in order to be consumed: do not try in any way to open those that have remained closed, but throw them away, because they are bad.
- Keep the mussels alive by covering them with a clean, damp towel, without squeezing it.
- A recommendation for connoisseurs passionate about raw shellfish, especially oysters: beware of vibro infections. The Vibrio vulnificus bacterium lives in warm marine waters and is not caused by pollution. It is an uncommon infection, but in 2012 its incidence increased by 43% compared to the three-year period 2006-2008, according to data released in 2012 by the food-borne disease active surveillance network (FoodNet).
- Wash your hands before and after handling seafood.
- The mussels still closed should be stored in the refrigerator at a temperature between 0 and 7 ° C.
- Do not mix raw and cooked mussels, to avoid possible bacterial contamination.
- Avoid storing mussels in a tightly closed container, plastic bag, or water.
- High-risk subjects are advised not to consume raw fish products for any reason. If you belong to this category, cook both fish and shellfish well. If you are unsure of your level of risk, consult your doctor or a qualified nutritionist.
- Be very careful if you breed bivalve molluscs yourself: follow the published warnings and always check with the local authorities that the culture waters are certified for shellfish farming.
- Discard dead mussels with half-closed shells or that open when you touch or shake them.
- Store them in the refrigerator immediately after purchase and consume them within two days.
- Neither alcohol nor hot sauces kill bacteria. Instead, make sure you cook all seafood well.
- The main sources of bacterial contamination for raw or undercooked fish products are salmonella and the bacterium Vibrio vulnificus.
- Be careful when consuming seafood of any kind. Mussels raised in certified waters, managed and processed in safe sanitary conditions, can be consumed raw, but only by healthy subjects.
- In addition to methylmercury, raw seafood also has other pitfalls. Healthy individuals generally run little risk if they consume reasonable amounts of raw seafood. In any case, a certain risk, even if reduced, exists for everyone: these are foods that can cause food poisoning, which cause vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain and other symptoms, sometimes in severe form.
- By consuming raw or undercooked seafood, people at high risk of food poisoning can develop serious and potentially life-threatening conditions. These subjects also include those who have a depressed immune system and reduced gastric acidity, as well as pregnant women, infants, young children and the elderly.
