mussels & clams

2019-09-29

Eating mussels, 1000 miles from the nearest ocean? Thanks to the wonder of refrigeration that is possible nowadays. UPS and FedEx even manage it overnight, but that costs more than it is worth to me.

The local Walmart used to sell frozen mussels until a few years ago, the corporate higher-ups decided that Southern New Mexico shouldn’t have them anymore. They still sell them in Albuquerque, and in Las Cruces & El Paso. But apparently Deming is not good enough for mussels.

I’d been on mussel prohibition about 5 years now, so guess my surprise when I found them at our local Peppers store.. They’re not cheap, more than double what Walmart sold them for, but that craving was there and it’s still a lot cheaper than overnighting them. I bought some. And clams too. Walmart never had those.

A bit sad to say so, but those clams got kinda lost. There were 15 clam shells in that 1 lb. package and they are so tiny compared to the weight of their shells that they'd fit in a large table spoon. There's no food there. You could easily swallow all 15 at once—the clams, not the shells of course. :-)

INGREDIENTS

This is what you need for 2 servings:

2 lbs. frozen mussels
1 lb. frozen clams
3 thick carrots
½ head celery
1 onion, peeled, whole

Pic1: mussels & clams

Directions

Cut the celery in 1" pieces. Slice the onions and carrots. (Pic2)
Transfer the mussels and clams to an 8-qt. cooking pot. (Pic3)
Add the veggies. Pic4)
Stir gently to avoid breaking the mussel shells. (Pic5)
Cover and bring to a boil. (Pic6)
Reduce heat and simmer 3 minutes.
These mussels and clams are fully cooked, only need warming through. (Pic7)
Serve and enjoy. (Pic8)
Serving suggestions:
- Serve with bread and butter. (Pic1)
- Bread the soup. (Pic10)
- Remove the mussels and clams from the shells before serving. (Pic9)