Zuppa di Cozze (aka mussels marinara in most Italian American restaurants), is mussels in a light tomato sauce. It is a dish that I love to make at home because to me it is so much better. But people are often scared to do it on their own, but trust me it is so easy. I like to serve it as a first course with some crusty bread to dip. So delicious!
You can also make this dish as a pasta course, by adding cooked linguini to the mussels! See recipe notes for the details.
Also, check out my stories for a full tutorial on how to clean the mussels.
Ingredients below and full recipe on my website.
Zuppa di Cozze
(Serves 6 as an Appetizer)
½ Cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
10 Garlic Cloves
½ tsp. Red Pepper Flakes
16 oz. Whole Plum Tomatoes – Crush by hand in a bowl
2 lbs. Prince Edward Island Mussels (cleaned)
1 1/2. Tsp. Salt
¾ Cups Pinot Grigio
½ Cup Clam Juice in Bottle
15 Basil Leaves – Chopped
6 tbsp. Butter (optional but highly recommended)
1 Loaf Crusty Italian Bread
Put the olive oil, garlic and red pepper flakes in a pot and heat on a very low flame until the garlic is cooked through. Mash the garlic with a fork. Raise the heat to medium. Then add the mussels. Season with salt, cover and begin to steam the mussels. About 5 minutes. Add the wine and clam juice. Cover and cook until the shells of the mussels begin to open. Add the tomatoes and incorporate all the ingredients. Add the butter (optional- but I highly recommend it because it gives the sauce great flavor) and basil. Cook for another 5 minutes. Serve with bread
Recipe Note- If you want to make this as a pasta course simply boil 1 pound of linguini. Reserve some of the pasta water (about ¼ Cup). Drain the pasta and combine with the sauce and add in your pasta water. This will serve 4.