Making a meal or appetizer from frozen mussels is fast and easy. The first step to all of the cooking options is thawing the frozen mussels. In this how-to guide, I will show you how easy it is to thaw frozen mussels and 4 simple ways you can cook the mussels!
Frozen half-shell mussels in the United States are harvested in New Zealand and imported to America. Frozen mussels have been pre-cooked and are on the half-shell. You can get frozen mussels that have been fully de-shelled too.
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❤️Why this how-to guide works
- This guide contains easy-to-follow instructions and pictures to follow
👩🏫 How-to thaw frozen mussels
Step 1: Place frozen mussels in a bowl.
Step 2: Fill the bowl with lukewarm water to thaw the mussels. Make sure you add enough water to cover the mussels completely. Let it sit for about 10 minutes and then come back to see if the ice has melted and the mussels have thawed. If they are still frozen, pour out the water, rinse the shells, and repeat this step.
Step 3: Go through the mussels and look for any suspect mussels. Look out for the ones with stringy hairs (beards) sticking out. Cut the beards with scissors, or you can gently tug them out with your hands, but be careful not to destroy the mussel.
Step 4: Wash the mussels one last time after de-bearding. And you're ready to cook them!
Mussels are ready to be cooked any way you want!
How to cook frozen mussels
After thawing and cleaning frozen mussels, they are ready to be cooked. Because they've already been pre-cooked their cooking time here is short.
1. Microwave
Yes, mussels can be cooked in the microwave. Plate the mussels on a plate and microwave for 3-5 minutes.
2. Steam
Steaming is a traditional way of cooking frozen mussels. Steam mussels for 5-6 minutes
3. Grill
Turn on the grill and grill the mussels. This will take 3-5 minutes.
4. Bake/Airfry
Bake or Airfry at 400 degrees F for 5-7 minutes. Here is an easy-baked mussel recipe!
Expert Tips
- Once mussels have been thawed do not refreeze them!
- Cook immediately after thawing
- If your mussels smell weird, look strange, or feel slimy after you've thawed them, it's best to throw them away. These are all signs that they've gone bad.
🙋♀️Recipes FAQ
Orange and tan/beige color mussels are perfectly normal. Female mussels are orange and male mussels are tan/beige.
Yes! You definitely can! Defrost and thaw them first and then cook them to your liking.
I would recommend it. If you don't you'll have some mussels that are still frozen together and you can't flavor them too well when you have a huge block of iced mussels shells stuck together.
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📖How-to-guide
How to Cook Frozen Mussels
Equipment
- 1 bowl
Materials
- 2 lbs mussels
Instructions
- Add frozen mussels to a bowl and add lukewarm water to fill the bowl and cover mussels completely.
- Let the mussels sit in the bowl for 10 minutes, then check to see if the mussels are still frozen. If they are, pour out water then rinse and repeat this step.
- Look for any mussels that have a stringy fiber coming out of them, also known as a beard. Use food scissors to cut them off or gently pull it out.
- Rinse one last time and they're ready to be cooked.
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