← Nouns Cooking · Italian

Ingredients

• 1 kg Mussels, scrubbed and debearded
• 600 g waxy potatoes, peeled and sliced 3 mm thick
• 300 g arborio rice, rinsed
• 1 Onion, thinly sliced
• 250 g Cherry tomatoes, halved
• 2 cloves Garlic, finely chopped
• 1 handful Parsley, chopped
• 80 g Pecorino romano, grated
• 6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 500 ml water, roughly
• Salt
• Black pepper

Method

1. Put the mussels in a large pan with a splash of water, cover and steam over high heat for 3–4 min, shaking, until they open. Discard any that stay shut. Pull off and discard the top shell of each, keeping the mussel in its half shell. Strain the liquid through a fine sieve and keep it.
2. Heat the oven to 200°C (180°C fan, 400°F). Oil a deep 28–30 cm baking dish and scatter in the onion, then half the potato slices in an overlapping layer. Top with a third of the tomatoes, garlic, parsley and pecorino, and season with pepper and a little salt.
3. Arrange the mussels in their half shells on top, shell side down, then sprinkle the rice evenly over them so it falls into the shells and gaps.
4. Add another third of the tomatoes, garlic, parsley and pecorino, then cover with the rest of the potatoes. Finish with the last tomatoes, cheese and the remaining oil.
5. Mix the mussel liquid with enough water to make about 600 ml and pour it gently down the side until it just reaches the top layer of potato.
6. Cover with foil and bake for 30 min, then uncover and bake for 25–30 min more, until the rice is tender, the liquid absorbed and the top golden. Rest for 10 min before serving.

Tips

• Tap any open raw mussels on the counter; if they don’t close, throw them away.
• Mussels are salty, so go easy on the salt until you taste the liquid.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

Great Italian Chefs Memorie di Angelina GialloZafferano