Mussels in Bacon, Tomato, Roasted Red Pepper & Red Wine
Yield: 4 servings
Equipment
- Immersion Blender or Potato Masher
Materials
- 4 lbs mussels scrubbed
- 2 lbs good bacon diced small (or prosciutto or guanciale)
- 8 roasted red peppers de-skinned (some black spots are okay), water reserved
- 2 cans of San Marzano tomatoes or 4-6 large and very ripe fresh tomatoes
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 tbsp butter
- 1 large yellow onion minced or 4 shallots
- 3 cups Somerset Ridge Ruby Red Wine 2 cups is for the sauce. Set aside 1 cup for the mussels.
- 4 cups homemade chicken or beef stock
- ½ cup olive oil approximately
- ¼ cup fish sauce
- 1 head garlic roasted
- 8 cloves of garlic chopped fine, amount separated in half
- 4 bay leaves
- Salt & pepper to taste
- Parsley flat-leaf Italian preferred
Instructions
- Roast your red peppers, discard the skin, set aside with any juices.
- On medium heat, add olive oil to heavy stock pot, along with the bay leaves and diced onions. You do not need to preheat the oil. Allow the onions to slowly turn translucent.
- Add the diced bacon, allow fat to render and bacon to get slightly crisp.
- Add the tomato paste, HALF of the fresh minced garlic & all of the roasted garlic, cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Raise the heat to med/high and add TWO cups of the red wine.
- Allow to simmer for 1 ½ minutes.
- Add the canned or fresh tomatoes, roasted red peppers, fish sauce, chicken or beef stock.
- Add a heavy pinch of salt.
- Simmer 15 minutes on medium heat, taste the sauce and add more salt if necessary.
- Add the butter.
- Keep simmering, lowering the heat to low. When the sauce had reduced to the consistency of a thick pasta sauce, remove from heat. This could take up to 20 minutes.
- Use an immersion blender to purée the sauce, but leave it chunky and rustic. Alternatively, use a potato masher.
- Add freshly cracked black pepper to taste.
- Set the sauce aside. Now you will use 2 cups of this prepared sauce to make the mussels. Cool down the rest before refrigerating or freezing.
- In another large pot or French oven, heat up 2 tablespoons of olive oil, add remaining minced garlic, allowing it to get fragrant.
- Add the remaining cup of red wine, simmer for a few minutes, then add 2 cups of the sauce.
- Turn heat to medium-high, place the mussels into the stock pot, cover and give them a good shake.
- Mussels are ready once the shells open (5-8 minutes approximately)
- Add the parsley