How to Clean and Debeard Mussels (Video)

There are so many ways you can make mussels. Whether it’s with garlic and wine or tomatoes or even some coconut milk, it’s really fun to get creative. Whatever ingredients you choose to stew and steam these yummy little edible bi-valves in we’ve put together a video so that you can clean them and store them properly before cooking them. Don’t let these little guys “muscle” you around.

Cleaning Mussels

1. Make sure the mussels are alive

2. They should be slightly open, if they are tap them on a surface or squeeze them and they should shut. If they don’t shut they are dead and throw them out. Never cook ANY dead shellfish.

3. Take a damp towel or a paper towel and pull off the “beard”, which is the little stringy filament on the side of the mussel. (This is how they attach to surfaces in the water)

4.  Take a scrub brush or a towel and scrub your mussels to get the grit and sand off so they are clean

5. Cook and eat!

Storing Mussels

1. You should eat your mussels same day you buy them if possible, but if not, store in a pan with holes in the bottom and you can put ice over them.  You never want to store your mussels in water because you will kill them.

2. You can also just refrigerate them by putting them in a bowl and putting a damp towel on top of them.

Easy!