Mussels

F&W Best New Chef 1996 Michael Schlow adds white beans and smoky chorizo to mussels for a hearty, substantial meal.

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

Before Chris Kronner makes this dish, he forages mussels from the nearby coast. "You have to climb down a 75-foot rock face on a rickety ladder; it's intense," he says.

The perfect match for this creamy cavatelli-and-mussels dish: Muscadet, a coastal wine that's superb with shellfish.

There are many versions of bread soup; this one, based on traditional peasant fare, is as thick as a bread pudding. The soup is delicious on its own, but we think the steamed mussels with their broth make a wonderful addition.

Mussels are lean, but the huge hunks of bread and french fries they're usually served with are very caloric. Chef Michael Psilakis cleverly serves his mussels with fiber-rich beans instead to sop up the delicious juices.

A sparkling white wine would be great with these crispy, buttery mussels from Marcia Kiesel.

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.

F&W contributing editor 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 is best served with lots of crusty bread for dipping.

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

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.

Alain Ducasse cooks mussels, then removes the top half of each shell before serving them with haddock and a 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.

"I first made these mussels for Thanksgiving two years ago," says 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.

Australian star chef Neil Perry loves the complex combination of Asian flavors in this dish: salty fermented beans, hot chiles and sweet, briny mussels.

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

Seafood is an opulent start to Thanksgiving dinner, especially in this briny bisque studded with big, plump mussels and spinach.

Mussel and tomato juice and celery seeds make a delicious broth to accompany steamed mussels. Look for farmed mussels; they're clean, so you'll only have to scrub them briefly.