Recipe
Recipe

Ingredients
Mussel poaching stock
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 3 cups water
- 2 x quarters small white onion, peeled
- 8 x 4 inch parsley stems with leaves
- 3 cloves
- 2 bay leaf
- ½tsp sea salt
Spoon leaf spinach
- 8 cups water
- 2 cups ice
- 2tsp sea salt
- 1½ cups leaf spinach
Roasted garlic gremolata
- 2tbsp roasted garlic, minced
- 1tbsp anchovy paste
- ¼ cup lemon zest, path removed, fine
- ¼ cup parsley, minced
Honey Citrus Vinaigrette
- 1 cup orange juice
- ¼ cup lime juice
- 1tbsp white wine vinegar
- ½ cup honey
- 2¼ cups olive oil
- sea salt
- white pepper
Assembly
- 6 New Zealand Greenshell™ mussels, cooked
- 1tbsp unsalted butter
- 6tsp pernod
- 6tbsp bacon, thick cut, diced and fried crispy
- 6tsp panko, toasted

Seafood used

Cooking method
Mussel poaching stock
- Combine all ingredients in a saucepan.
- Bring to simmer and keep warm.
Spoon leaf spinach
- Prepare an ice bath combining 4 cups of water and 2 cups of ice in bowl.
- Bring remaining 4 cups water and salt to boil.
- Place spinach in a strainer and immerse in the boiling water 15 seconds.
- Shock spinach in ice bathe to stop cooking process.
- Squeeze excess water from spinach.
Roasted garlic gremolata
- Combine ingredients in bow and mix together.
- Transfer to clean container. Cover and refrigerate.
Honey citrus vinaigrette
- Place all ingredients except oil, salt and pepper into a blender.
- Puree until smoothly combined.
- Add oil slowly with blender on low.
- Season to taste.
- Using funnel, transfer vinaigrette to plastic squeeze bottles and refrigerate.
Assembly
- Separate mussels from half shell using a sharp knife.
- Briefly warm mussels by dipping into simmering poaching stock - just warm do not re-cook.
- Warm shells.
- To finish spoon leaf spinach, heat butter in skillet over medium heat, add spinach and saute until warm; sprinkle with pernod and toss.
- Divide spoon leaf spinach between shells, and put mussels on top.
- Top each with gremolata and garnish each with bacon and toasted panko.
- Pour over hot honey citrus vinaigrette.
- Arrange mussels in shells in bowl or on plate. Serve immediately.
Recipe courtesy Nurtured Seafood and image Patrick McDonnell Photography