black bean steamed mussels
2 min readGrowing up we often indulged in fresh New Zealand mussels sold at ourlocal fish market. Most of the time, we would simply poach them and serve alongside a little soy sauce. Here is spe-cial way to have them that sets the rich umami of douchi (fermented black beans)against the natural sweetness of the mussels.
Serves 500g fresh mussels 2 tbsp fermented black beans 1% 2 cloves garlic, very finely diced pinch granulated sugar/2 tsp cornflour tsp vegetable oil 1 Rinse the mussels under cold water and brush off any dirt, if needed. Tap any open mussels and discard if they don’t close. If you are right handed, hold each mussel with your left hand on its side with the flatter, more stable edge as the base. Slide the tip of a small knife in the slit where the ‘open. Use the knife to release the mussel meat from one half of the shell, slic-ing under the tough white tube of muscle stuck to the shell as you do so, then tear off and discard the meatless shell. Rinse the mussels under cold water and drain. Arrange each shell on a steam-proof plate so it forms bowl for the cooking juices to collect in during steaming.
2 Rinse the fermented black beans under cold water. Chop them roughly, add the diced garlic, then use the side of a wide knife to crush the beans into a rough paste. Use the knife to fold in the sugar,cornflour and oil. You can do this in small bowl with a spoon, if you prefer.
3 Pinch off black bean-sized nuggets of paste and place a few nuggets on top of each mussel. Steam the mussels for 3 minutes with the water at full boil. Eat the mussels straight from the shell, slurp-ing up the fragrant juices as you do so.
