Mussel and Corn Chowder

I went on a seafood foraging outing along the coastline with some friends, and came back with too many mussels to eat in one sitting. We had a dinner party to help consume all the shell fish we found, but were only able to eat through half of our live mussels.  With the impending threat of mussels gradually dying and causing a huge stink on my patio, I forced myself to cook the leftover mussels today. 

So, today, I made a chowder out of the leftover live mussels and the result was pretty good, if I say so myself. I found the recipe on the web, but added my own flourishes, such as the corn and chives. This recipe is versatile; you could substitute the mussels with some other type of seafood to make all manner of chowders.

Ingredients

5 lbs of mussels, or enough to yield one bowl of chopped mussel meat

1 bottle of white wine (Sauvignon Blanc or similar)

6-8 cloves of garlic, minced finely

1/3 cup of tarragon, thyme or parsley

Corn kernels removed from 3 ears of white corn

3-4 cups of mussel stock

Olive oil

1 large onion, chopped coarsely

2 large Idaho potatoes, peeled and sliced into 1" squares

4-8 celery stalks, sliced into 1/4" slices

4-7 bacon strips, sliced into 1/4" slices

2-3 cups of milk (from skim to cream, whatever your preference)

3-4 tablespoons of sliced chives for garnish

Instructions

1. Scrub the mussels under cold running water to remove barnacles and other growth.  You can scrub one mussel shell against another mussel shell to efficiently remove barnacles from both mussels.  Soak mussels in fresh water for 1-2 hours.

2. In a large pot, add a few tablespoons of olive oil, and add minced garlic.  After 2 minutes, pour in the bottle of white wine. Add salt to taste. Once boiling, add the mussels and cover.  Lower the heat to medium heat. Simmer for 8-15 minutes, or until mussels are opened.

3.  Remove mussels from heat. Remove mussel meat from shell.  Remove the beard from the mussel meat. Pour and reserve the mussel stock, without pouring out the grit and sand on the bottom of the pot. 

4. Chop the mussel meat finely until organs are not recognizable and put aside, in the refrigerator if necessary.

5. In a large pot over medium high heat, cook 1/4 cup of olive oil and the bacon until the bacon is browned around the edges.

6. Add onions and the celery and cook until the onions begin to become translucent - 6-8 minutes.

7. Add the mussel stock and potatoes, and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to medium and simmer for 8 minutes.

8. Add the corn kernels and herb of choice and cook for 4 more minutes.

9. Add minced mussel meat. Add milk (3 cups) to taste. Add salt and pepper to taste.

10. Ladle soup into individual bowls, and sprinkle with chives and serve.