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Fish, Italy

Neapolitan style mussel pasta

Neapolitan style mussel pasta is a dish of pasta and mussels in a garlic and parsley tomato sauce, serving 4, ready in 35 minutes. It's an easy recipe, for under €3.00 per person. The key to success is the strained mussel liquid, which flavors the sauce so well you won't need to add salt.

Tonight we're mixing mussels and pasta in a garlic and parsley tomato sauce, just like they do in Naples.

Neapolitan style mussel pasta
Total time
35 min
Difficulty
Easy
Cost per person
€3.00
Calories per person
580 kcalcalculated by Kiloach, your weight coach
Season
Summer, Fall

Mussels and pasta might seem like an odd pair, but in Naples it's a classic summer dish. The mussel liquid, strained and simmered with tomatoes, garlic, and a touch of chili, makes a briny, fragrant sauce that coats the pasta without drowning it. Fresh parsley stirred in at the end adds the brightness the dish would otherwise miss.

This is a good weeknight dish when you want a change from regular pasta, or a simple Sunday meal for adults. It takes a bit of organizing between the mussels, the sauce, and the pasta, but nothing complicated. At Mon Chou, we like recipes like this one that turn a bag of mussels and the bottom of a few pasta boxes into a real meal.

The ingredients

4 people

Pantry

  • Mixed pasta (various shapes)often in the pantry 360 g
  • Crushed tomatoesoften in the pantry 400 g
  • White wineoften in the pantry 10 cl
  • Dried chilioften in the pantry 1 pinch
  • Olive oiloften in the pantry 3 tbsp
  • Saltoften in the pantry 1 pinch
  • Pepperoften in the pantry 1 pinch

Fish counter

  • Bouchot mussels 1.5 kg

Fruits and vegetables

  • Garlic 3 cloves
  • Parsley 6 sprigs

Allergens Gluten, Mollusks

The step by step recipe

  1. Scrub and rinse the mussels, remove the beards and discard any that stay open.

    A sharp tap on the counter will make live mussels close up.

  2. Steam them open in a large covered pot with the white wine, then shell them, keeping the strained liquid. 6 min

    Keep about ten mussels in their shells to decorate each plate, shell the rest.

  3. Saute the garlic and chili in the oil, add the tomatoes and some of the mussel liquid, and let it simmer. 12 min

    Don't add salt, the mussel liquid is already salty.

  4. Cook the pasta in salted boiling water. 10 min

    Start with the longest pasta shapes, then add the smaller ones a few minutes later, so everything finishes at the same time.

  5. Mix the pasta, sauce, and mussels together, sprinkle with parsley, and serve.

    Add the mussels to the sauce at the very end, 1 minute is enough to warm them without toughening them.

Our tips to get it right

  • Pick mussels that are tightly closed and feel heavy, a sign they're full of seawater and alive.
  • Always strain the mussel liquid through a fine sieve or cloth, it often holds grit or sand.
  • Cook the pasta slightly under normal doneness, it finishes cooking for a minute in the sauce.

The variations

  • Swap the white wine for a splash of water if you want an alcohol free version, the flavor will be a touch milder.
  • For a vegetarian version, replace the mussels with sauteed button mushrooms and keep the rest of the recipe the same.
  • For a faster version, use just one pasta shape and frozen pre shelled mussels, which saves about ten minutes.

What to serve it with

  • A glass of dry white wine
  • Grilled bread for dipping
  • A lemony arugula salad

Storage

This dish is best eaten the same day, since mussels lose their texture in the fridge. If needed, keep it for 1 day at most in a sealed container and reheat gently in a pan with a splash of water. Freezing isn't recommended because of the mussels.

Questions about this dish

Can you use frozen pre shelled mussels?

Yes, that works and saves time. Just warm them briefly in the sauce at the end of cooking, without letting them cook too long so they stay tender.

Why mix several pasta shapes together?

That's the spirit of Neapolitan pasta mista, which uses up leftover pasta packets. The different shapes cook at different speeds, giving a varied texture in the bowl.

Do you need to remove all the mussel shells?

No, keep about ten mussels in their shells to decorate the plates. Shell the rest so they mix easily into the pasta.

Can you make the sauce ahead of time?

You can make the tomato sauce alone a few hours ahead and reheat it gently. Add the mussels and toss with the pasta only right before serving.

How long does it take to make a Neapolitan style mussel pasta?

Count 35 min in total, prep and cooking included. The recipe is rated “easy”.

How many calories are in a Neapolitan style mussel pasta?

About 580 kcal per serving, for a recipe meant for 4 people. Calories are calculated by Kiloach, your weight coach, the app that partners with Mon Chou.

How much does a Neapolitan style mussel pasta cost?

About €3.00 per serving, or €12.00 for 4 people, based on average supermarket prices.

What allergens does this recipe contain?

This recipe contains gluten, mollusks. Always check the labels of the products you buy.

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