Instructions
The trouble with urban myths is that they are very hard to eradicate, even when they’re demonstrably untrue.
Think of the poor aluminium manufacturers who, even now, face constant accusations that their product will give you Alzheimer’s disease. This continues despite years of research that has constantly disproven any link.
Then I grieve for the countless steaks destroyed through poor barbecuing. Dad insists that the best way is to turn it only once…..yet every food scientist will tell you that turning your steak several times locks in the moisture and flavour.
And then there’s the mussels, those poor misunderstood bivalves. How many times have I heard the chorus: “If a mussel fails to open, it’s not fit to eat”.
While it makes a great sound-bite, and may seem sensible on first inspection, in fact this claim is little more than poorly-informed peculation, reinforced by years of popularisation. The truth is both more interesting, and more complicated, and has to do with the biology with which mussels open, and the manner in which they are harvested.
At the pointy base of the mussel there is a small circular muscle that controls the opening and closing of the twin shells. It’s called the adductor. As mussels are filter-feeders, the adductor is crucially important, allowing the organism’s tendrils to extend out and grab passing sediment for nutrition.
But the adductor is tense when the mussel is closed (not open), as the twin shells are naturally in a semi-open position due to their shape. This means that when the mussel dies, the shells open and remain so. If a mussel fails to open, it is usually as a result of damage to the adductor during processing.
If mussels are open when you buy them, there may be a problem. If they smell unpleasant, there almost certainly is a problem. But if they fail to open when cooked, simply grab a knife, prise it open, and show that mollusc who’s boss.
Mussel and squid hotpot