Miguel loves it when The Captain’s crew tour, because he’s normally on the receiving end of a seafood bounty. This time we’d been to a seafood garden off Eden, New South Wales – Erick Hyland’s mussel farm to be precise. He’s not just handy at knocking up fibreglass boats (think Whitepointer 263), he’s also handy at massaging molluscs. His blue mussels (also called black mussels) come from Twofold Bay, the third-deepest natural harbour in the Southern Hemisphere. You can buy them fresh, straight from the boat at Snug Cove, but Erick kindly spared a few kilos for The Captain’s crew. We suspect it’s because he secretly loves Miguel.
INGREDIENTS
1kg mussels
250ml Freixenet Cava
1 bottle Hoegaarden, wheat beer
100g Maestre chorizo, finely diced
100g Maestre jamon, finely diced
4 garlic gloves, minced
3 hot chillies, halved
5 lemon tree leaves
1 tbs extra virgin olive oil
1 tbs butter
2 bunches chives, finely chopped
PREPERATION
Rinse mussels, pulling off any beards. Set aside.
In a large, deep, heavy based pan on medium heat. Wait till really hot (at least 4 minutes).
Put all ingredients into a bowl except for mussels, beer and cava. Mix well. Add to saucepan all ingredients from bowl followed by the mussels, beer and then cava. Allow to cook for 5 seconds before covering with lid. Allow steam to build inside for at least 4 minutes.
Serve with grilled sourdough.
Note: Grill sourdough, rub with garlic clove and tomato.
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