Passport & Plate - Kiwi Style Mussel Fritters
New Zealand | Sunday, January 26, 2014 | 5 photos
Ingredients
Mussel Fritters
Makes 12-14 large fritters
2.5 kilos Whole Green shelled mussels ~ cleaned and de-bearded
1 cup water
4 rashers bacon ~ diced and fried briefly
4 small sweet corn cobs ~ husked with the corn sliced from the cobs
1 red caps ~ deseeded and diced
8 spring onions ~ trimmed and sliced
1 bunch coriander ~ Leaves picked and chopped.
1- 2 red chillies ~ finely chopped and added to taste
3 teaspoons salt flakes
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Oil for frying
For the batter
6 eggs
1 cup flour
1 heaped tablespoon cumin
1 heaped tablespoon paprika
2 Tb milk
½ tablespoon fish sauce
2 tsp baking powder
How to prepare this recipePlace the whole cleaned mussels into a large pot with the water. Cover the pot with a lid and cook on high until the mussel shells steam open. You only want the shells to just open, so I like to keep a close eye on the pot, removing the mussels one at a time as they open. This should take between 5-10 minutes. Place the mussels off to the side to cool before removing the delicious meat from the shells. Roughly chop the mussel meat and retain along with any juices that may have seeped out.
For the batter, whisk together 3 whole eggs and 3 egg yolks retaining the whites for later. Add the flour, cumin and paprika, milk, fish sauce and baking powder and mix until a smooth batter is achieved.
Into a large bowl add the chopped mussels, bacon, corn, red capsicum, spring onions and red onion. Stir to combine and add the batter mixture to the bowl. Season with the salt and pepper and mix the batter thoroughly to evenly distribute all the ingredients. I find that using disposable gloves and mixing with your hands is an effective way to stir this mixture.
Just before cooking the fritters beat the retained egg whites with electric beaters until they form stiff peaks. Gently fold the whites though the fritter mixture in 2 batches using a large metal serving spoon until only just combined, being careful not to over mix or fold to hard as all the air will be knocked out of your mixture and they fritters won't be so light.
Heat a skillet or flat top barbecue with a dash of oil until almost smoking and drop large spoonfuls of the batter into the pan. Drop the temperature of the pan to medium and cook the fritter for 4-5 minutes before flipping and cooking through on the other side. Repeat until all the mixture is used up.
To serve, try our family favourite which is a mussel "buttie". 1 large fritter sandwiched between two slices of buttered bread with a squeeze of lemon and a dash of sweet chilli sauce. The perfect market food!
The story behind this recipeInside the oak cabinet overflowing with floral patterned cups and cherished china my Grandfather Matthew Te Pere would store a paper bag filled with his prized black and white striped aniseed lollies. It is one of my more distinct memories of him handing them out if we behaved whilst ever guarding his sweets with hawk like observation.
Matthew was a physically imposing man with huge hands and booming voice that traveled through the walls of my grandparents small home. My grandfather was a great yet humble man regarded for his wisdom, generous heart and extraordinary ability to feed the masses.
One such occasion of historical family importance was the yearly crusade to our tribal homeland where my grandfather would wield his cooks knife and organisational prowess.
Come February 6th each year New Zealand celebrates the 1840 signing of a treaty between indigenous Maori and English colonials that was to see the end to bloody battles. The Treaty of Waitangi was named after its location which sits in a turquoise harbour once home to the nations capital and our ancestral lands.
To lay recognition to our forefathers vision for peace, my grandfather would take up residency in in Waitangi where he would be bestowed the honour of head cook for these annual celebrations.
Over the course of 3 days Matthew would cater for thousands of people through impressive feasts. Huge groups of guests would descend on the meeting house in Waitangi and by customary lore all visitors to our land would be welcomed and feed.
Traditional earth cooked meats alongside prickly milk thistle were hunted and foraged for the many meals with an ever abundant supply of seafood on offer. My grandfathers delectable mussels fritters a fragrant folklore legend.
Visit Waitangi today and you can try a New Zealand style mussel fritter at the local market. Though no longer prepared by my grandfathers hand his spirit lives on in all the cooks he has inspired in my family and beyond, me being one of them.
