Mussels au gratin in the oven, is simply delicious appetiser of fish, typical of Southern Italy. The addition of Razor Clams is something very common around the Adriatic coast of my region, le Marche, where this recipe is very popular in the restaurants menu' or on our family's table as "secondo piatto".
Very simple to prepare: the shells of the mussels and razor clams (stuffed with molluscs) are stuffed with a soft and very tasty mixture based on breadcrumbs, garlic, oil, parsley and filtered water from the mussels; during the cooking phase in the oven, it will congeal into a tasty and compact filling, forming on the surface a crunchy and golden crust typical of gratinated mussels! Becoming one with the shellfish it covers, enhancing its flavor, without covering its taste. A mouth-watering delicacy!
For 4 people:
250g Mussels
250g Razor clams
120g Breadcrumbs
1 garlic clove
10g Parsley (for chopping)
30g Extra virgin olive oil
Salt and black pepper to taste
First of all, clean the mussels and razor clams, leave them in a bowl and cover with water. Add a teaspoon of sea salt and leave for about 20/30 minutes. This procedure is for purging.
Then wash them and drain. Place them in a large bowl/pot, let them open over a low heat with lid; discard the closed mussels.
Let it cool down, then throw away the half of the shell in which the mollusc is not attached and clean the edge of the shell if needed. Set the filled shells aside.
Finally, carefully filter the water from the mussels and razor clams with a linen cloth with narrow holes.
Let's prepare the breadcrumbs with all the ingredients; in a bowl place it with the olive oil, crushed garlic, chopped parsley, salt and gradually add the filtered cooking water by mixing all the ingredients with your hand until you get a dump/moist breadcrumbs.
The filling of the mussels and razor clams au gratin must be soft, but not watery, so adjust the consistency yourself, you may need an extra pinch of breadcrumbs, or half a teaspoon of oil. In these above photo, you can see the consistency.
Finally, prepare your mussels and razor clams au gratin in a large oven tray, drizzle with oil. Alternatively, you can also line it with baking paper.
Then arrange the shells with the mussels and razor clams closer together but not on the top of each other, otherwise they will not grate perfectly. Add 1 teaspoon of filling to each shell, the fruit must be completely covered. Fill the oven tray and sprinkle some olive oil all over and black pepper to your taste.
Finally Cook the mussels in the oven at 200 ° for 12 minutes. After the indicated time, turn on the grill and raise the temperature to 230° and let it cook for 2 to 4 minutes (the time varies according to your oven) or when a nice golden crust has formed and crunchy on the surface. I like super crunchy breadcrumbs so I always cook more than you probably would do, check the colour and judge to your taste! Serve the mussels au gratin warm with some lemon on the top. But they are also excellent cold in in summer time!
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