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Home » Main Meals » Fresh mussels in a creamy garlic sauce (with chips)

Fresh mussels in a creamy garlic sauce (with chips)

Author: VJ Published : October 2020 Updated : May 2023 / Be the first to comment!

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Recipe

Fresh mussels in a creamy garlic sauce are a delicious treat. And they are so easy to prepare. They steam open in less than 10 minutes, revealing their soft, plump, juicy cushions. Serve the traditional Belgian way with french fries for a yummy (almost instant) meal of moules frites.

A dish of mussels covered in creamy garlic and onion sauce.

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Table Of Contents
  1. Fresh mussels with creamy garlic sauce
  2. How to make fresh mussels and creamy garlic sauce
  3. Variations
  4. Make the mussels in advance
  5. Other recipes
  6. Pin for later
  7. Fresh mussels in a creamy garlic sauce recipe
  8. Fresh mussels in a creamy garlic sauce (with chips)

Fresh mussels with creamy garlic sauce

The Belgians know a thing or two about tasty food. You only have to look at a Belgian waffle to know that you are on to a good thing! But it’s not only waffles that Belgium is famous for. A dish of Belgian mussels in a creamy garlic sauce, accompanied by a side of crispy french fries, eaten on a pavement cafe in Belgium has to be experienced to be believed.

I was lucky enough to experience this for myself a few years ago when I found myself on an assignment in Brussels. There is an entire street in the centre of the town dedicated to small restaurants, each vying with one another to get customers into their shop to experience their mouthwatering mussels and chips (or moules frites as they are known in Belgium).

Once seated, and order placed, the food arrives in minutes. Plump juicy mussels, flavoured with garlic, the crispiest of french fries, and a huge glass of ice-cold Belgium beer to wash it all down with. There’s something really special about sitting at a pavement cafe, eating delicious food, and just watching the world go by.

So I decided to make these mussels myself at home, and I think they turned out pretty well. Why not try them and see for yourself.

A pan of freshly cooked mussels, all opened to reveal the delicacy inside.

How to make fresh mussels and creamy garlic sauce

For a complete list of ingredients and full instructions, see the printable recipe card at the end of this post.

This recipe is sufficient for two people as a main, or 4 people as a starter. You can easily adjust this recipe to cater for more people by increasing the quantity of the mussels and adjusting the ingredients for the sauce.

Ingredients

You will need fresh mussels in their shells. Allow at least 1 pound (450g) per person – more if you are feeling greedy!

The edible portion of the mussels is approximately 30% of the weight of the mussels with the shells. So one pound should provide about 4 to 5 ounces (or 140g) of mussel meat.

For the creamy garlic sauce you will need:

  • Finely chopped onion – this should be quite finely chopped – you don’t want large pieces of onion – less than 1cm pieces are ideal.
  • Garlic – you can use minced fresh cloves, or if you’ve run out (as I had) you can use minced garlic from a jar. I use one teaspoon of minced garlic for every 2 cloves of fresh.
  • Butter – this is for sweating the onions and will also form the base for the cream sauce. If you want to be healthy you could get away with using olive oil, but it will change the flavour of the sauce somewhat.
  • Vegetable stock – made with 1 stock cube per cup of boiling water.
  • Cream – because cream makes everything taste better, and it also provides body to the sauce.
  • Freshly chopped parsley – to add to the sauce, and also to use as a garnish. I wouldn’t use dried parsley as the cooking time is too short for dried parsley to soften properly.

Clean the mussels

Place the mussels in a colander and rinse under cold running water (image 1 below). Discard any mussels that do not close, and also remove and discard any mussels with broken shells. If you tap sharply on the shell, the mussel should close.

If there is a ‘beard’ along the edge of the mussels, remove this as well.

Leave the mussels to drain while you fry the onions.

Prepare the sauce

steps for cooking fresh mussels in a creamy garlic sauce.

Melt the butter in a large frying pan or saucepan (with a lid) and sweat the onions and garlic gently until the onions are translucent. Take your time with this step – you don’t want the onions to brown. I find that if I place a lid on the pan and leave the onions on very low heat for about 5 minutes they will soften nicely (image 2 above).

Add the stock to the onions and bring to a boil. Then tip in all the mussels.

Cover the pan with a lid, turn down the heat, and allow the mussels to steam for 5 minutes until they have all opened (image 3 above). Give the pan a little shake before opening the lid. Discard any mussels that have not opened.

Using a large slotted spoon, remove the mussels from the stock, allowing the stock to drain back into the pan. Place the mussels in a dish and set them aside while you finish off the sauce.

Leave the stock on low heat and stir in the cream, then add the chopped fresh parsley (image 4 above).

At this point, you should taste for seasoning and add salt and ground black pepper to your own taste if you think the sauce needs it.

Allow the sauce to come back to the boil then tip the mussels back in. Leave to simmer for 2 minutes to allow the mussels to heat through.

Tip into a serving dish, garnish with extra chopped parsley and serve immediately alongside a plate of crispy french fries and chunks of crusty bread to mop up the sauce.

A dish of open mussels on a plate with french fries alongside a serving dish filled with cooked mussels.

Variations

You can easily turn this recipe into creamy garlic mussels in white wine sauce by substituting half of the chicken stock for white wine. Allow the sauce to simmer for 10 minutes on a very low heat before adding the cream. This will allow the alcohol to evaporate. Then stir in the cream and parsley and tip in the mussels.

To make a mussels marinara, add 1 cup of finely chopped fresh tomatoes, 1 teaspoon sugar and 1/2 a cup of dry white wine to the softened onions. I always add a small amount of sugar when I am cooking with tomatoes as I find the sugar cuts through the tartness of the tomatoes. Cover the pan with a lid and leave to simmer for 10 minutes until the tomatoes are softened. Add the mussels and allow them to steam as per the recipe instructions for about 5 minutes until the mussels have all opened. Do NOT add the cream and stock.

If you prefer a sauce with more texture, you can thicken it with 1 teaspoon of cornstarch (cornflour) mixed with one tablespoon of water. Before adding the cream, drizzle the cornstarch mixture slowly into the sauce, stirring continuously, until the sauce reaches the desired consistency. Then stir in the cream and parsley and tip in the mussels.

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Overhead shot of a bowl of freshly cooked mussels.

Make the mussels in advance

If you want to prepare these mussels the day before you can store the mussels in a covered dish in the refrigerator. I personally wouldn’t store them longer than one day,

To reheat, tip the mussels and the sauce into a saucepan and reheat gently until piping hot.

Serve immediately and discard any uneaten mussels after the meal. Do not reheat them a second time.

Other recipes

If you enjoyed this recipe for fresh mussels in a creamy garlic sauce, you may also like to try some of my other Fish and Seafood recipes.

  • Easy creole Jambalaya
  • Seafood stuffed pasta shells
  • Spicy fish and rice bake
  • Easy homemade fish cakes
  • Creamy mussel pasta
  • Fresh mussels with pasta in tomato sauce

Pin for later

Why not pin this recipe to one of your Pinterest boards so you can find it later. Just click the image below.

Fresh mussels in a creamy garlic sauce recipe

A dish of mussels covered in creamy garlic and onion sauce.

Fresh mussels in a creamy garlic sauce (with chips)

Fresh mussels in a creamy garlic sauce are a delicious treat. And they are so easy to prepare. They steam open in less than 10 minutes, revealing their soft, plump, juicy cushions. Serve the traditional Belgian way with french fries for a yummy (almost instant) meal of moules frites.
Recipe by: Veronica
Starter / Main
Belgian
Calories 683
Prep 10 minutes minutes
Cook 15 minutes minutes
Total Time 25 minutes minutes
Servings: 2 people
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5 from 1 vote

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Equipment

  • Colander
  • Large frying pan or saucepan with lid
  • Sharp Knife
  • Chopping Board
  • Slotted Spoon
  • Spatula

Ingredients

  • 2 pounds (900g) fresh live mussels in the shell
  • 1 medium onion finely chopped (approximately 1 cup chopped)
  • 2 cloves garlic finely minced
  • 2 ounces (50g) butter
  • 1 vegetable stock cube dissolved in 1 cup of boiling water
  • ⅓ cup (80ml) single cream
  • 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
  • salt and black pepper to taste

Instructions

Preparation

  • Pull the beards (if any) from the mussels.
  • Place the mussels in a colander and rinse under cold running water.
  • Discard any mussels that do not close or have broken shells. Leave to drain.
  • Peel and finely chop the onion.
  • Peel and mince or finely chop the garlic.
  • Chop the parsley.
  • Dissolve 1 vegetable stock cube in 1 cup of boiling water.

Cook the dish

  • Melt the butter in a large frying pan or saucepan, and gently fry the onions and garlic until the onions have softened. See note 1.
  • Pour in the stock and bring to the boil.
  • Add the mussels, cover the pan with a lid, turn the heat down to a simmer and leave for 5 minutes, shaking the pan occasionally.
  • Discard any mussels that have not opened.
  • Use a large slotted spoon to remove the mussels from the pan. See note 2.
  • With the pan of sauce on a low heat, stir in the cream and 2 tablespoons of chopped parsley.
  • Check for seasoning and add salt and black pepper to your own taste.
  • Bring the sauce back to the boil then return the mussels to the pan and leave to simmer for 2 minutes until the mussels are heated through.
  • Tip the mussels and sauce into a serving dish, garnish with the remaining parsley and serve immediately. See note 3.

Notes

Note 1 – saute the onions on a low heat and do not allow them to brown – they should just become translucent.
Note 2 – the mussels should be removed from the pan so that you can finish off the sauce.  Try to leave as much of the liquid and onions in the pan as possible.
Note 3 – mussels are traditionally served with a side dish of crispy french fries and slices of crusty bread to mop up the sauce.
 

Nutrition

Calories – 683kcal | Carbohydrates – 30.1g | Protein – 58.6g | Fat – 35.6g | Saturated Fat – 17.9g | Cholesterol – 201mg | Sodium – 1344mg | Potassium – 58.6mg | Fiber – 1.4g | Sugar – 2.6g | Calcium – 273mg | Iron – 18mg

I am not a nutritionist. The nutrition information has been calculated using an on-line calculator, and is intended for information and guidance purposes only. If the nutrition information is important to you, you should consider calculating it yourself, using your preferred tool.

Unless otherwise stated, a cup is the standard US cup containing 240 ml. In all my recipes this cup is assumed to hold 140g of flour. For help converting other ingredients between cups, grams, ounces and other measures, see my recipe conversion calculator.
All my recipes are developed and tested at sea-level. For tips on adjusting recipes for high altitudes see my post on baking at high altitudes.
Tried this recipe?If you made this recipe I’d love it if you could leave me a comment and let me know how it went!
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Filed Under: All Recipes, Main Meals

About VJ

In my previous life, I was an IT Consultant. Now that I've swapped an office for a kitchen I have a lot more time to spend on things that interest me such as trying out new recipes. Most of my cooking is based around quick and easy meals, and you'll probably find a little South African influence creeping in due to the many years I spent there.

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In my previous life, I was an IT Consultant. Now that I've swapped an office for a kitchen I have a lot more time to spend on things that interest me such as trying out new recipes. Most of my cooking is based around quick and easy meals, and you'll probably find a little South African influence creeping in due to the many years I spent there.

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