NOTES! You should read them.
1. So yeah, JCT Kitchen. I’ve been wanting to eat here for more than a year, as it’s been getting quite a lot of buzz in Atlanta, and press on Food Network. I now regret waiting so long to go, as this place ROCKS. Really great atmosphere and very friendly service when we went for lunch. I didn’t have anything I didn’t like. If I had any complaint, it’s that the truffle flavor on the fries wasn’t very strong, but then I would drink Truffle Oil out of the bottle if I could afford it. The ‘angry’ mussels are obviously well worth the attention they’ve been getting. Perfectly cooked mussels in a heady, spicey broth with peppered bacon and serrano peppers. So. Good.
2. True Facts about me #1: I am terrified of marine life. Not eating it, obviously, but I can’t be in like, natural bodies of water without getting freaked out something is going to brush my leg, and then kill me. I don’t know. Fish and all things aquatic just freak me out. So even though I love seafood, I rarely cook it. I just don’t want to touch it. But mussels, I figured, would be like handleling rocks, and I was pretty much right. There are a few things I learned about buying and preparing mussels:
-Get good shell fish! Don’t risk getting sick!! Ask your fish monger to try to give you only mussels that are firmly closed, and make sure they are put in a bag with ice and the bag is NOT CLOSED UP. I love the cashiers at Whole Foods because they were also careful about not closing the bag up, showing they are familiar with ingredients and the things they sell (which is rarely the case, I’ve found). The closed mussels are still alive, and you want to keep them that way until you cook them.
-when prepping the mussels, go through again and make sure you throw out any open mussels the monger may have missed (alliteration win!), as well as any with cracked shells. I was really lucky, and only had about half a dozen I had to toss.
-Mussels apparently also have ‘beards’, or thready things hanging from the lip of the shell. Only like, 2 of mine had this, so I wonder if Whole Foods does most of the removing or something. The beard is pretty easy to pick and yank off, even for me and my squeamish-ness.
-The mussels have finished cooking when most of them have opened, usually after about 5-10 minutes. Don’t cook them too long or they’ll get rubbery. Make sure you throw out any mussels that haven’t opened! This means they went into the pot already dead, and again, you don’t want to eat it!
3. I don’t know how much difference it makes, but I used a bottle of Yuengling beer, which turned out awesome. White wine is also a very traditional way to cook mussels, and I think this is probably how JCT does it, though the taste wasn’t much different. I think next time I make mussels I’m going to use sake and coconut milk and make a Thai version.
4. What I really loved about JCTs angry mussels was the subtle spice. I’m not real big on in your face spicey food, but I like a low heat. JCT got it just right, and the peppers didn’t bother me at all while I was eating the mussels, but I was sweating when trying to eat the broth with bread. I think they took a lot more of the pepper seeds out then I did, because mine was much more aggressively spicey (though my boyfriend disagrees and says I am just a wimp). I think it was the serrano pepper flavor that made me want a more Thai version of this dish, lol.
5. If you’re in Atlanta, Go to JCT. Now. If not, give this recipe a try, and you’ll get a very very close taste of what you’re missing.
p.s. the peppered bacon? I would just eat a plate of that by itself. I am buying more of this bacon from the farmers market tomorrow because it is amazing. I am never going back to super market bacon again.
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