Rootitoot Mussels in White Wine Sauce
And think of the ocean. Our lovely oceans and their bounty. I'm so fortunate to live on Vancouver Island on Canada's west coast where local mussels are available as part of our ever-changing seafood offerings. Something wonderful is always in season. This time, it's mussels. Enjoy!
Ingredients
| 1 tablespoon | 15 ml | avocado or olive oil |
| 2 tablespoons | 30 ml | finely diced onion |
| 2 cloves | garlic, minced | |
| 1/2 cup | 120 ml | white wine (or broth) |
| — | salt and pepper | |
| 1 tablespoon | 15 ml | lemon juice |
| 1 tablespoon | 15 ml | tomato paste (optional) |
| 1 teaspoon | 5 ml | chopped fresh thyme |
| 1 teaspoon | 5 ml | chopped fresh basil |
| 3 pounds | 1.4 kg | mussels, scrubbed |
| 4 | slices good crusty bread, buttered |
Instructions
- Press Sauté on the Instant Pot and when the display says Hot, add the oil and the onion. Sauté for a minute or two to soften them, then add all other ingredients except the bread. Lower the heat by pressing Sauté a couple of times — you'll see the display go from More to Less to Normal. Stop when it's on Normal.
- Close the pot but leave the valve open — set to Venting, not Sealing. Leave it for 2 minutes. While they cook, pan fry the buttered bread on both sides to a nice golden brown. If you like, add a minced clove of garlic to the butter before browning the bread, or even a sprinkle of garlic powder.
- After the two minutes, hit Cancel and open the Instant Pot. If you want to enrich the broth, add 1 or 2 tablespoons butter and stir gently.
- Serve the mussels in bowls to hold the lovely cooking liquid, and the toast to soak it all up.