Mussels "alla Toscana"

This dish is incredibly quick, very common in Tuscany and throughout Italy. It is a lovely and tasty starter for any kind of mains to follow. If you make a ton of it and chips this is a great main also.

Ingredients:

1 kg very fresh mussels, or as many as you can fit in your largest pot allowing the room to close the lid

4 medium garlic cloves

40 gr extra-virgin olive oil

Two tablespoon of fresh chopped parsley (optional)

Method:

Put all the mussels in the kitchen sink and cover abundantly with cold water.

Take out the filaments from each of them (you will have to pull a little).

Rinse each mussel well (use a scratchy dish pad, or a nail brush to clean them).

Put them in a colander and give them a final shower with cold water. At this point discard any mussel that is open (most should have closed under the final shower).

Put your garlic (chopped, not minced) in the oil on a medium heat until it reaches a good yellow colour (not brown). Add immediately the mussels and 4 tablespoons of water (add parsley if you are using it), stir well and close the lid.

Time it to 5 minutes (stir once after 3 mins). The mussels should have all opened and the flesh showing a light yellow/orange colour. If they don't look like the picture above leave for a further 2 mins. Discard the couple of mussels that did not open.

Dish the mussels out and add a tablespoon or more of the juices to each portion.

Enjoy!