Smoked Mussel Meat

I'm looking for a recipe to smoke mussels. I have found many that smoke the mussels for instant consumption right out of the shell. That is not what I'm looking for. My wife lived many years on the coast near Portland Maine. She tells stories of buying small deli type plastic tubs filled with just the smoked meat of the Mussels. I have tried smoking them in the shell on my WSM which takes 30 to 60 minutes, they weren't very smokey and dried out quickly. Does anyone have any knowledge of how I can go about this? Are they possibly cold smoked?

Thanks for any help you may be able to supply.

hmmm, sounds good. I can't be much help, but I'm going to post here and turn on notifications so I can follow this intriguing thread via email.

I'm guessing they're cold smoked.

I found this, it might be helpful. They have described a process to cold smoke mussels which involves a 5 minute brine.

http://www.fao.org/wairdocs/tan/x5894e/x5894e01.htm

I found many other recipes but they all followed the extremely basic format of soaking woodchips and then smoking them....

This is an example of all of these recipes:

http://www.boston.com/ae/food/...7/25/smoked_mussels/

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Cameron:
I found this, it might be helpful. They have described a process to cold smoke mussels which involves a 5 minute brine.

http://www.fao.org/wairdocs/tan/x5894e/x5894e01.htm

I found many other recipes but they all followed the extremely basic format of soaking woodchips and then smoking them....

This is an example of all of these recipes:

http://www.boston.com/ae/food/...7/25/smoked_mussels/ </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

At first glance it sounds like the method described in the first link, (brine and smoke), might just work. 180° smoke temp might be just a little challenge but very do able.

David

Really small fire, damp everything down... get it to 180 and make it last for 30 mins. Sounds like a good challenge.

at the one link, I didn't notice anything related shucking mussels. I imagine they are easier than clams, but wondering if there's a trick.

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content"> She tells stories of buying small deli type plastic tubs filled with just the smoked meat of the Mussels. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

curious what you did with them. I'm thinking of chopping and making a smoked mussel ceviche. I don't have a specific recipe but I have some that I could modify to work with the smoked mussel meat. I'm thinking a chile orange sauce with green onions, red onions, yellow peppers and cilantro.

The easiest way to shuck (open) fresh mussels is to steam them until they just open then use a sharp paring knife and run it over the top and under the mussel. this will cut the cartilage that connects it to the shell.
If they are frozen they will have generally opened slightly. Just use the sharp paring knife above and below the flesh.
Once you have removed from the shell, remove the beard.
I don't smoke mussels.

This is one of our favourites. It is a recipe that I developed based on typical Thai flavours.

I use fresh Tasmanian deep-sea mussels. I just de-beard them and give them a rinse and a brush.
I make up a paste consisting of:
The leaves of a bunch of basil
About 8 stalks and leaves of coriander
2 cloves of garlic
2 medium heat chillies
1/2" of ginger
Juice of 1/2 lemon and it's pulp
I tablespoon of good quality fish sauce

Blend all the ingredients to a smooth paste

In a 12" wok on the side burner of the Genesis add 1/2" cup of white wine and 1/2 can of coconut milk/cream and the basil paste. Bring to the boil and then turn down to a simmer, add 2 Kg (4 1/2 lb) of mussels and cover with a lid. Cook for about 4 - 7 minutes until most of the mussels are open. remove the mussels from the soup and place in a large serving bowl. Give the soup a good stir and pour over the mussels. Serve while hot. The remaining mussels should open while sitting in the soup if you have timed it right. Serve with white rice in bowls. To eat, open mussels and remove meat. Mix with rice and soup and enjoy. Goes extremely well with a crisp dry white wine like chardonnay.

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Cameron:
Really small fire, damp everything down... get it to 180 and make it last for 30 mins. Sounds like a good challenge. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

This past weekend I picked up approx. 4lbs of Maine mussels and made and attempted creating smoked mussels for an appetizer similuar to a smoked oyster.

Rinsed, scrubbed and removed beards then steamed them a pot with about quart of water for 3-4 minutes just until they opened. I immediately iced to stop the cooking process. Popped the tops and easily removed the meats. I then brined them for 5 minutes in 1 quart water 1/2 cup salt mixture, rinsed with fresh water and coated them well with olive oil.
I spread them on a PAM coated circular mesh grid I had purchased from the grilling section at a local department store.
Wanting to impart smoke without drying them out, I first soaked several handfuls of Cherry wood chips for 1/2 hour patted with a towel to remove excess exterior water. Added 1-chimney of fully ignited coals to my WMS and closed all vents wanting to get to a temp of 180° or lower. I let the internal temp come down to 225°, dumped the soaked chips on the coals, inserted the dry water bowl and placed the mussels on the upper rack. The temp continued to dive and I was not getting smoke, so at 150° I figured I had put the coals out. I quickly grabbed my little propane torch, popped open the access door and blazed away on the coals and chips for a couple of minutes until they seemed to be reignited. The temp leveled out at 150° (a good thing!) and I got a lot of smoke. After 30 minutes I pulled the little rascals. They were great! Finger licking good and nice with a glass of Chardonnay. Not truly a smooth or simple process but I finally got there.

Next attempt I will use less coals, fill the water bowl, and hopefully not kill the fire.

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Next attempt I will use less coals, fill the water bowl, and hopefully not kill the fire. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

with ice!

man, sounds great. I cant wait to try this.

what do you thinj the point of the brine was? do you feel it prevented them from drying out. did it change their texture or flavor?

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by j biesinger:
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Next attempt I will use less coals, fill the water bowl, and hopefully not kill the fire. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

with ice!

man, sounds great. I cant wait to try this.

what do you thinj the point of the brine was? do you feel it prevented them from drying out. did it change their texture or flavor? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I was following a basic method used in the second link in the third posting in this chain by Cameron. I'm sure it helps hold moisture in like most brines, as well it did add some nice saltiness.

Really cool!

I will have to try this

Lots of great fresh shellfish here, which reminds me - I need to go for oysters this weekend.

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">I was following a basic method used in the second link in the third posting in this chain by Cameron. I'm sure it helps hold moisture in like most brines, as well it did add some nice saltiness. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

that's what I would suspect. However mussels come from brine, clam juice or oyster liquor is essentially brine. I was wondering if the brine step was redundant. I'll assume the recipe you were following was tight though. It seemed to come from a reputable source.

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by j biesinger:
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">I was following a basic method used in the second link in the third posting in this chain by Cameron. I'm sure it helps hold moisture in like most brines, as well it did add some nice saltiness. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

that's what I would suspect. However mussels come from brine, clam juice or oyster liquor is essentially brine. I was wondering if the brine step was redundant. I'll assume the recipe you were following was tight though. It seemed to come from a reputable source. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
You are correct, and it might make good sense to brine only a portion of the mussels next time for a comparison.