Mussels with Italian sausage meat, vegetables with tomato and white wine broth elevated with fennel seeds, basil and garlic is bound to be delicious.
I usually go classic with mussels à la marinière or Provençale, but this time I went all out Italian and it proved to be a great new avenue to cook mussels!
Tips for a successful mussels with sausages and fennel dish:
- Rinse and clean your mussels to remove any sea debris, rocks and dirt that you definitely don’t want as part of your meal!
- Let the broth and flavor profile build up prior to adding the mussels. Patience is key!
- Once you put your mussels in, keep a close watch and don’t let them overcook. If they stay closed after cooking, throw them out as they aren’t edible.
As for sides, French fries are a classic! If you don’t want to go with good old potatoes, try sweet potato fries instead which go very well with mussels. I inspired my sweet potatoes wedges from Cafe Delites, do look it up as they really get crispy and delicious!
Ingredients
- 2 lb of mussels
- 1 lb of Italian sausage meat
- 1 carrot, minced
- 1 onion, minced
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/2 cup of white wine
- 1 tbsp of tomato paste
- 1/2 tbsp of fennel seeds
- 1/2 tbsp of basil
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 cup diced tomatoes
Instructions
- Rinse and clean mussels
- In a pot, cook the carrot and onion on medium heat for 3 minutes to soften
- Add the sausage meat and cook until the sausage meat is down to small pieces
- Once the sausage is nice and golden, add the herbs and the tomato paste mixed in the white wine
- Add the diced tomato and let it cook for 10 minutes on low heat
- Add the mussels and cover for 4-5 minutes until the mussels open. Throw away the closed mussels
- Serve with oven baked sweet potato wedges
Nutrition Information
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.