in tomato and chorizo sauce with grilled prawns
This is definitely high on the list of my favourites to prepare and to eat. Fantastic as a starter or as a main. Whenever good fresh mussels are within reach I love to make this dish. Paired with a glass of white wine (New Zealand sauvignon blanc works well) this is comfort food for sure.
The prawns are not necessary but make the dish much more attractive and special. Fresh or preferably toasted artisan bread (see my sun-dried tomato, roasted garlic and asiago cheese bread recipe) is a great accompaniment and fantastic for soaking up the sauce. And, if you are serving this as a main, you can’t go wrong with some salted fries with this as well.
This is a non-precision recipe and you can adjust it in any direction you want. Generally, you will not need salt as the salt from the mussels usually comes through. We use lots of fresh cilantro and cook the sweet stems in the sauce. It is fantastic. Give it a try.
Ideally, you will serve this in the same vessel it is cooked in. If you have a deep bowl-shaped pan it is the ideal vessel as long as you can find a lid to put on it while the mussels are cooking. Otherwise, a medium-large saucepan will do. Cast iron is great for this and allows it to stay warm longer.
I use my side burner (searing element) for this entire dish but you have to be very careful not to burn the sauce while cooking the mussels. Alternatively, you can move it over a barbecue element once you bring it to a boil to be safe.
Ingredients & Prep Notes (Serves around 2 as a main or 4 as a starter)
- 3 lbs (1.36kg) of fresh mussels — washed and debearded just prior to cooking
- 1 large firm/dry chorizo — sliced lengthwise 4 times, then cut at an angle to create small strips
- prawns or large shrimp — 2 per person is adequate
- 1/2 to 1 cup white wine — more or less (more if you want it to taste good!)
- light olive oil — enough to cover the bottom of your pan
- 1 knob of butter — more or less (more if you want it to taste good!)
- 1 can, 28oz (796ml) of San Marzano tomatoes — do not substitute
- 1 sweet onion — chopped small
- 1 head of garlic — chopped (not pressed), chopped cooks easier without burning and gives a great flavour
- 1-2 red Thai chilli — chopped fine (remove seeds if you do not want it too spicy
- 1 bunch of cilantro — chopped separating leaves and stems (reserve a small amount of leaves for presentation)
- 1/2 lemon — juice only, to be squeezed onto the finished mussels
Making it happen
- On medium-high heat, add enough olive oil to lightly coat the bottom of a large open rustic pan or deep skillet.
- Add the chorizo sticks and stir-fry until crispy (about 5 minutes or so). Keep stirring them to avoid burning.
- Remove and set aside.
- In the same pan, add the chopped onion and stir-fry for a few minutes until starting to cook (about 3 minutes or so). Add a little more olive oil if needed.
- Add in a knob of butter, and once melted…
- Add in the chopped garlic and chilli, and stir-fry until starting to cook (about 1 minute).
- Add in the chopped cilantro stems and stir-fry until the cilantro stems are starting to cook (about 3 minutes or so).
- Turn the heat to high and add in the white wine. It should immediately start to cook down and this process will ensure all the garlic and veggies are cooked through (cook about 1 minute).