How to prepare mussels

Mussels need to be carefully cleaned and checked before eating in order to avoid a mouthful of sand.

Method

Check the mussels are closed, any open shells should close when gently tapped, if they don’t you should discard them. Discard any with broken shells

Place the mussels in a colander and run under cold water to remove excess sand

Scrub the shells with a scourer to remove any barnacles attached

Pull away any ‘beards’ attached to the side of the mussel - this is the brown tag that looks a little like seaweed sticking ot of the shell

The mussels are now ready to be cooked