32 Mussel Recipes for Magnificent Meals (2024)

Mussels are bivalves that are enjoyed everywhere from Brazil to Belgium, where steamed mussels with French fries is considered the national dish. There's lots to love about mussels: They're inexpensive, quick-cooking, readily available, and incredibly versatile, not to mention delicious! Mussels can be prepared with many methods — steamed, smoked, boiled, barbecued, or roasted. Ready to cook mussels at home? You can't go wrong with these fantastic recipes, from classic wine-steamed mussels to gorgeous seafood pasta dishes and more.

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Sauvignon Blanc-Steamed Mussels with Garlic Toast

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Toasted garlic bread and mussels made with Sauvignon Blanc come together in this classic steamed mussels recipe. The dish is table-ready in just 20 minutes.

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Steamed Mussels with Coconut Milk and Thai Chiles

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This is chef Tyler Florence's idea of a party-friendly one-pot dish. He simply steams plump mussels in reduced lager until they're just starting to open and then adds a creamy, spicy, slightly tart mixture made with garlic, ginger, chiles, cilantro, coconut milk, and lime juice.

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Mussels with Harissa and Basil

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Toasted walnuts are a surprise addition to the creamy, smoky red pepper puree that gets swirled into these harissa-spiked steamed mussels. Anise-y Thai basil and salty-sour pickled onions complement the sweet, plump mussels.

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Moules Frites

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Moules frites, a Flemish dish consisting of steamed mussels served with French fries and Dijon mayonnaise, is so popular that it is considered to be the national dish of Belgium. Here, the mussels are steamed in white wine, butter, and shallots for an appetizer or light meal.

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Cioppino with Mussels

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Chef Andrew Zimmern packs his version of cioppino, the classic Italian-American fish stew, with incredible tomato flavor and lots of succulent seafood.

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Seafood and Chicken Paella with Chorizo

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Spicy chorizo, dark meat chicken, and a seafood trio of shrimp, mussels, and co*ckles come together on a bed of saffron-infused arborio rice for this sumptuous Spanish dish.

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Spaghetti with Mussels, Squid Ink, and Breadcrumbs

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Commonly sold as squid ink, cuttlefish ink lends its signature deep black hue to this dish and coats every strand of spaghetti with its briny, mineral-rich taste. A simple mussel puree provides a mild, delicate seafood flavor and creamy richness.

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Clam and Mussel Conserva

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Clams and mussels — steamed with white wine and butter and then shucked and smothered in a lemony dressing — make for a luxurious first course of a leisurely lunch. The result is fresh-tasting shellfish in a briny, bright sauce, perfect for scooping up with lettuce or spooning over toast.

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Curried Cod and Mussels

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Chef Alain Ducasse cooks mussels, then removes the top half of each shell before serving them with haddock and curry sauce with mussel jus. Home cooks can serve the mussels with both of their shells and replace the haddock with easier-to-find cod.

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Angel Hair Pasta with Squid, Mussels, and Zucchini

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Seasoned panko breadcrumbs and a drizzle of olive oil add extra flavor and textural interest to this seafood pasta recipe from James Beard Award-winning chef Michael White. Serve it with a lively, floral northern Italian white wine.

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Mussel Soup

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With garlic, fennel, tomatoes, and a bit of orange zest, this soup has a nice Provençal feeling. And with cultivated mussels, which barely need to be cleaned, it's a snap to prepare. If you can't find mussels, try a fairly firm white fish, such as cod, instead — the soup will be different but equally good.

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Cavatelli with Mussels, Lillet, and Dill

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This creamy, fragrant recipe is made with fresh cavatelli, a fun pasta shape that resembles gnocchi or tiny hot dog buns. Muscadet, a coastal wine that's superb with shellfish, is a great match for the dish.

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Pancetta-Wrapped Mussels with Basil

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Crispy, briny, and juicy, these ingenious mussels are a simple and unexpected fall dish; they're just as delicious roasted or grilled. Threading the shelled mussels onto skewers makes them easier to handle.

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Mussels with Pancetta and Crème Fraîche

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The luscious broth for these plump mussels from chef Jimmy Bannos, Jr., is creamy, tangy, and lightly scented with fresh marjoram.

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Steamed Mussels with Tomato and Garlic Broth

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Mussels have three things going for them: They're accessible, quick to cook, and delicious. Using clean, farmed mussels negates their one big drawback — the tedious chore of scrubbing and debearding.

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Risotto-Style Ditalini with Mussels, Clams, and Saffron

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For this creamy dish, chefs Tyler Rodde and Curtis Di Fede use a fish stock to cook pasta slowly, risotto-style. If you can't find ditalini,look for another small pasta shape or pearl couscous.

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Mussels Fra Diavalo

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Chef Andrew Zimmern recommends using plump, wild Mediterranean mussels from Maine or Penn Cove mussels from the Pacific Northwest in this recipe. Simple and elegant, it’s a classic summer dish that's best served with lots of crusty bread for dipping.

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Tagliatelle with Mussels and Tarragon

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This simple, strikingly black-and-white seafood pasta gets a double hit of anise flavor from Pernod and fresh tarragon.

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Mussels with Speck, Lemon, and Oregano

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Chef Ethan Stowell loves mussels all year round, but he's particularly fond of the plump summer ones from Washington's Puget Sound. "I often grab a couple handfuls of mussels at the end of the night and cook them at home for a late-night snack," he says. Here he flavors the briny mussels with lemon juice, fresh herbs, and speck, the salty cured ham.

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Mussels with Caramelized Fennel and Leeks

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A simple mussel broth, caramelized vegetables, and a dollop of crème fraîche all pump up the flavor of these steamed mussels.

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Mussels with Saffron and Citrus

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Chef Mourad Lahlou simmers mussels in a lovely saffron cream sauce. Lahlou prefers Mediterranean mussels. "The ones I get are called that, but they really come from the Pacific Northwest," he says. "They're plump, juicy, and don't toughen up as much as other varieties when you cook them."

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Seared Cod with Spicy Mussel Aïoli

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From chef Eric Ripert of Manhattan's Le Bernardin comes this simple, sophisticated dish that relies on store-bought mayonnaise to enrich the sublime garlicky mussel sauce.

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Mussel and Chorizo Soup

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At Steve Corry's Five Fifty-Five in Portland, Maine, mussels from nearby Bangs Island were almost always on the menu. He often steamed the mollusks in white wine and lemon juice scented with pickled cherry peppers and garlic. For this Mediterranean-inspired soup, however, Corry serves the mussels in a brothy liquid with plenty of chorizo.

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Mussels with Merguez Sausage

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To give mussels steamed in white wine a North African flavor profile, chef Hugh Acheson includes the richly seasoned lamb sausage called merguez.

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Olive Oil-Poached Cod with Mussels, Orange, and Chorizo

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At The French Laundry in Napa Valley, chefThomas Kellerserves this dish with an orange gelée flavored with Espelette peppers. In this simplified version, he pairs the olive oil–poached cod with an orangesauce vierge,a classic French sauce typically made with olive oil and lemon juice.

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Steamed Mussels with Tarragon

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One of the first recipes that star chef Tom Colicchio learned to cook, when he was about 13, was a version of these steamed mussels, packed with tomatoes and fresh tarragon.

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Pickled Mussels

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For this dish from chef José Andrés, mussels are first boiled until they just start to open. Their juices are used as the base for a marinade made from vegetables, sherry vinegar, herbs, pimentón, and orange zest.

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Spicy Mussels with Ginger and Lemongrass

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Large green-shelled mussels are farmed along the coast of New Zealand and exported around the world. The spicy aromatic broth that Auckland cookbook author Annabel Langbein uses here reflects the influence of New Zealand's growing Asian population on its cuisine.

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Thrace-Style Spicy Mussels

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Award-winning cookbook author Paula Wolfert's mussels are first steamed with butter, cinnamon, and white wine, then seasoned with pepper and lemon juice and tossed in an herbed chile-tomato broth swirled with feta cheese.

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Mussels in Sailor's Sauce

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Mussels are a staple in the cooking of Galicia, a rugged coastal region in northwestern Spain. The unusual name for this dish refers to the fast, fresh sauces (which usually contained onions and tomatoes) that the wives of fishermen would prepare from their husbands' catch of the day.

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Spaghetti with Mussels, Clams, and Shrimp

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A citrusy, sharp dry white wine would offer a welcome contrast to the briny mussels and clams here. Look for an Italian Pinot Grigio.

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Curried Mussels in White Ale

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"I first made these mussels for Thanksgiving two years ago," says chef-restaurateur Sang Yoon. "I don't make a traditional Thanksgiving dinner — I cook outside the box and call it Sangsgiving ABT (Anything But Turkey). The mussels were such a hit, I put them on the menu at Father's Office." Adding creamy white ale to the intense curry broth helps mellow the flavors.

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