Mussels in Sour Beer Just after we came up with the idea for The Publican, a few of the chefs started coming over to my house to play around with different dishes, trying them over and over again until we got it right. We probably went through fifty or sixty mussel preparations, riffing on the traditional white wine version but also experimenting with other spirits. The winner was a variation using Gueuze (sounds like gooze ), a sour Belgian beer that's a little cidery and a little musty and has just the right amount of acidity that we balance with a good amount of butter, garlic, thyme, and chile flakes. Serves 4 2 tablespoons unsalted butter 1 tablespoon sliced celery 1 tablespoon sliced garlic 1 tablespoon sliced shallot 1 bay leaf 1 teaspoon thyme leaves 1⁄2 teaspoon chile flakes 2 pounds mussels 1⁄4 cup Gueuze beer Sea salt 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice 2 tablespoons chopped celery leaves or lovage Baguette, for serving In a medium pot--ideally something ceramic or cast-iron that can go right onto the table--heat 1 tablespoon of the butter over high heat. When the butter foams, add the celery, garlic, shallot, bay leaf, thyme, and chile flakes and sweat for 1 minute. Add the mussels to the pot, flip all the ingredients together, pour in the Gueuze, cover the pot, and cook until the mussels are open, 3 to 5 minutes. Pull off the lid, stir in the remaining butter, and finish the mussels with a pinch of salt, the lemon juice, and celery leaves. Serve piping hot with hunks of baguette. Excerpted from Cheers to the Publican, Repast and Present: Recipes and Ramblings from an American Beer Hall by Paul Kahan, Cosmo Goss, Rachel Holtzman All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.
