Mussels!! Mussels!! Mussels!!

(above) A mussel!!

(above) My youngest brother, Adam...

(above) Step 1 - Wash the mussels & scrape off the barnacles attached onto the shells...

(above) The tiniest baby mussel that I had ever seen...

(above) Step 2 - Cooked the mussels in a big wok...

(above) The cooked mussels...

(above) Step 3 - Separate out the boiled mussels from the shells...

(above) Mussels separated...

(above) This is how the tiniest mussel looked like after being cooked...

(above) Step 4 - Remove the waste (consist of sea mud) & hairs attached onto the mussels...(above) The separated hairs & waste...

(above) Hairs & waste removed...

(above) Step 5 - Mussels are ready to be cooked...

(above) Ta-da!! Mussels cooked in hot & spicy chilli gravy!!

Hubby wasn't working last Monday... After settling his errands, he met up with his siblings somewhere in Punggol Beach... Well, I can't say it's not exactly in "Punggol Beach"... It's some sort of a remote place situated at the Punggol Swamp Area...

So what did they do there? Picnic? Nope... Mermaid Fishing? Nope... "Crabby" hunting? Nope... They actually hunted for mussels!! As in THE MUSSELS that we could easily get in the wet market... Yup!! Yup!! Yup!! There's lots of them!! And so, they brought back their harvested mussels home to be washed and cooked...

Pictures uploaded...

A simple recipe that I'd like to share... Lily's Hot & Spicy Mussels!!

Ingredients:-

4 Cloves of Chopped Garlics (I love to have more of these in my cooking)
1 Whole Chopped Onions
Chopped Chinese Parsleys (to garnish)
Chilli Paste (I like it hot & spicy)
Ground Black Peppers (optional if you are a fan of hot & spicy food)
Lemon Juice (to add a little bit of zest or you can even use vinegar)
Sugar (a little bit of sweetness)
Salt (to taste)
Cooked Mussels

So you heat up about 2 tablespoons of cooking oil. Fry your chopped garlics, onions and black peppers. Then add in the chilli paste and fry for another 3 to 5 minutes or so, at a medium heat. Then you add in your mussels into the cooked gravy. Add in sugar and salt to taste. Squeeze about 2 tablespoons of lemon juice and there you have it!! Your own home-cooked hot & spicy mussels. Garnish it with your chopped parsley. :)