Spaghetti Beans and Mussels

Happy to help! Spaghetti with beans and mussels is a dish that combines the flavors of the sea with those of the land, typical of Mediterranean cuisine. Here is the recipe with an Italian twist.

Ingredients

• 320 g of spaghetti
• 500 g of fresh mussels
• 400 g of already cooked beans (preferably cannellini or borlotti)
• 2 cloves of garlic
• Chopped parsley to taste
• 200 ml of tomato puree
• 4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
• Chili pepper to taste
• Salt to taste

Preparation

1. Begin by thoroughly cleaning the mussels, scraping off any incrustations and removing the byssus, then rinse them several times in cold water.
2. In a large pan, sauté the chopped garlic with oil and chili pepper for a couple of minutes.
3. Add the mussels to the pan and cover with a lid. Cook until they open, about 5-7 minutes. Once opened, remove the mussels from the pan, shell half of the mussels, and leave the rest whole for the final presentation.
4. Filter the liquid released by the mussels with a fine mesh strainer and set it aside.
5. In the same pan, add the tomato puree and cook for about 10 minutes.
6. Add the cooked beans and the filtered mussel liquid, adjust for salt, and let simmer for another 5 minutes, seasoning with salt if necessary.
7. Meanwhile, cook the spaghetti in plenty of salted boiling water, following the package instructions for al dente cooking.
8. Drain the spaghetti and transfer them to the pan with the beans and mussels sauce, mix well to combine the ingredients and allow them to flavor for a minute.
9. Serve the spaghetti hot, garnished with the mussels you have left whole and a sprinkle of chopped parsley.

Curiosity

This dish represents a perfect example of the Mediterranean diet, which combines high biological value proteins from fish with those from legumes, all seasoned with the unmistakable taste of extra virgin olive oil.