Ingredients

Serves 6 as a starter or 3-4 as a main

2 kg mussels
250 ml dry white wine (or beer/cider, see note)
1 bay leaf
1 dessertspoon butter
1 finely chopped onion
1 clove crushed garlic
Pinch of saffron
Juice of half a lemon
Pepper
250 g crème fraîche
2 egg yolks
Parsley

Method

Bring the wine and bay leaves to the boil in a wide pan, and add the cleaned mussels. Cover and shake the pan occasionally over a high heat, just until the mussels open. Strain the liquor into a bowl, keeping the mussels warm. Taste the liquor. If it is too salty dilute with water or wine.

In the meantime, soften the onion and garlic in the butter. Add the saffron, pepper and lemon juice to taste. Pour in the cooking liquor and bring to the boil. Remove from heat. Do not add any salt.

In a separate bowl, mix the egg yolks and cream. Whisk into the sauce slowly then return to heat and bring to a gentle simmer. In theory the sauce shouldn’t curdle even if it boils. Once hot, pour over the mussels and decorate with chopped parsley.

Note: This recipe deserves fresh small mussels from Kinkawooka SA.
I have made this with dry cider instead of wine, and l liked it at least as much. Or, if you prefer a slightly bitter taste, substitute the wine for beer.