Mussels With Fennel Food

MUSSELS WITH FENNEL AND ITALIAN BEER

Steps:

• Heat a 3 1/2-quart saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and heat another 30 seconds. To the hot pan, add the shallots and fennel. Sweat, stirring often with a wooden spoon, until fragrant and beginning to soften, 2 minutes. Add the garlic and 1/4 teaspoon salt and cook another 2 minutes. Add the mussels and stir gently once or twice in order to coat in the oil. Add the beer and stir one more time. Cover with a tight-fitting lid and cook until the mussels have opened, about 4 minutes, stirring halfway through. Discard any unopened mussels. Stir in the butter and tarragon and season with 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Serve with slices of crusty bread to dip in the sauce.

STEAMED MUSSELS WITH FENNEL, TOMATOES, OUZO, AND CREAM

Steps:

• Heat olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in shallots and garlic, and cook until tender. Stir in fennel and tomato, and continue cooking about 5 minutes.
• Mix white wine, ouzo, and heavy cream into the saucepan, and bring to a boil. Gradually stir in mussels, 1/2 the basil, and salt.
• Cover saucepan, and continue cooking about 5 minutes, until the mussels have opened. Garnish with remaining basil to serve.

MUSSELS WITH FENNEL DUO

Steps:

• In a large, wide pot that can comfortably hold the mussels, toast the fennel seeds over medium-high heat until fragrant. Add the oil, butter, fennel, and a pinch of salt. Raise the heat to high and cook until the mixture is bubbling and fragrant, about 2 minutes. Stir in the lemon zest.
• Add the mussels and wine and cover. Cook, shaking the pot occasionally, just until the mussels open, about 10 minutes. Toss in the basil leaves.
• Divide the mussels and all of their cooking liquid among serving bowls.

MUSSELS WITH CREAM, FENNEL, AND WHITE WINE

Steps:

• Melt butter in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add chopped fennel, shallots, garlic and fennel seeds. Sauté until fennel is tender, about 5 minutes. Add wine and cream and boil until liquid thickens, about 10 minutes. Add mussels. Cover and cook until mussels open, about 5 minutes. Divide mussels among 6 shallow bowls (discard any mussels that do not open). Ladle broth over and serve.

LEMON-FENNEL MUSSELS

Steps:

• Heat oil in a large Dutch oven or other heavy pot with a lid over medium heat. When hot, add shallots; cook, stirring often, until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Stir in fennel and 1 teaspoon salt. Season generously with pepper. Saute fennel until it begins to soften, 3 to 4 minutes. Raise heat, and add lemon juice and wine. Bring to a boil, and cook until liquid is reduced by a quarter, about 2 minutes.
• Stir in mussels, and cover. Cook mussels until they just open, stirring halfway through to move the ones at the bottom to the top, 4 to 6 minutes. Discard any mussels that haven't opened after 6 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in lemon zest. Season with salt and pepper. If serving immediately, stir in parsley; if serving at room temperature, let cool slightly before adding parsley.

FENNEL-STEAMED MUSSELS PROVENCAL

Steps:

• Place the oil in a large pot and turn the heat to medium; 1 minute later, add the garlic, fennel, fennel seeds, liqueur, and tomatoes and tarragon if you're using them. Bring to a boil, cook for about 1 minute. Add the mussels, cover the pot, and turn the heat to high.
• Cook, shaking the pot occasionally, until the mussels open, 5 to 10 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to remove the mussels and fennel to a serving bowl, then strain any liquid over them and serve.

MUSSELS WITH CHORIZO AND FENNEL

Steps:

• Remove the tops and stem bottom of the fennel, reserving the green 'hairs', and slice vertically into thin slices. Finely chop those hairs as well.
• In a large sauté pan, brown the sausage over medium high heat with a little olive oil.
• Once the sausage is browned, add the fennel and 1 cup of wine. Braise for about 10 minutes until fennel is flexible but still crunchy and the wine has reduced by half.
• Add the tomatoes and garlic to the sausage/fennel mixture. Crush about half the tomatoes with the back of a spoon to release some of their juices. Cook for about another 5-10 minutes.
• Meanwhile add the other cup of wine and mussels to a stockpot, cover and cook on medium heat until mussels are cooked, about 4-5 minutes.
• Once the mussels are cooked (discard any unopened mussels), combine the mussels (and liquid) with the sausage mixture and mix well. Cook for about another 5 minutes to meld the flavours. Season to taste.
• Serve in large soup bowls, spooning a little of the broth in each bowl and topping the fennel, chorizo and mussels mixture with some of the reserved fennel tops.