BRRRRR…… It’s Siberian cold here; it has been that way for the past couple weeks ever since we got 2+ feet of snow. What better mid winter warm-me-up dinner than mussels steamed in kimchi and topped with braised pork belly?
Serves 4 as an entre:
Ingredients:
5 lbs mussels
2 cups Kimchi (preferably home made)
3-4 T flour
1/4 cup white wine
braised pork belly
Method:
The day before serving the mussels, place them in a large bowl filled with water that has 3-4 T of flour mixed in. This not only purges the mussels but feeds them. After 24 hours, drain and rinse them well.
Put 1 1/2 cups of Kimchi in a large stock pot with the white wine, and bring to a boil. Then add the mussels, cover and cook until the mussels shells open up (less than five minutes). In the meantime, slice the braised, deboned pork belly into narrow strips or slices. Warm them up in a saute pan with a T of olive oil for a couple of minutes, or micro wave them for 45 seconds.
When the mussel shells have opened, drain them in a colander with a bowl underneath to catch the broth. Divide the mussels among the bowls, ladle the reserved kimchi broth into each bowl, and top with the warmed pork belly slices. Slice the remaining 1/2 cup (or more) of kimchi into strips and garnish each bowl. Serve immediately with big pieces of fresh rustic bread.
RMA
