Mussels can be prepared in surprisingly different ways, from simple steamed dishes with garlic and white wine to hearty rice meals, creamy soups, and cold pasta salads.
This collection brings together 26 mussels recipes, including five from our own kitchen and a selection of dishes from other food writers. You’ll find quick appetizers, comforting main courses, and recipes inspired by Mediterranean, Asian, and European cooking.
If you’re unsure where to start, our white wine garlic butter mussels are a good introduction. For something different, try our Bulgarian-style mussels with rice, mussel soup with lovage and yogurt, or chilled mussels and orzo salad.
Before You Cook Mussels
If you’re starting with fresh, live mussels, a little preparation makes cooking much easier.
First, check and clean the shells, removing any beards and dirt. Our guide to cleaning mussels walks through the process with photos and practical examples.
If you’re not cooking them immediately, see how to store mussels for handling fresh mussels and storing cooked leftovers.
For a simple stovetop method, our guide to cooking fresh mussels explains how we steam them in a covered pot and recognize when they’re ready.
Individual recipes may use different cooking methods, so follow the instructions for whichever dish you choose.
26 Tempting Mussels Recipes You’ll Love
The first five recipes come from our own kitchen. The remaining dishes are ideas from other food writers, with links to their original recipes.
1. White Wine Garlic Butter Sauce Mussels
These mussels cook in a fragrant sauce of white wine, garlic, and butter, with fresh lovage adding a distinctive herbal aroma. We use Muscat Ottonel wine in our version, which gives the sauce its particular character without overpowering the mussels.
What We’d Serve This With 🥖
A few slices of crusty bread are ideal for soaking up the wine, garlic, and butter sauce. A simple green salad would also work well if you’re serving the mussels as a main course.
Get the recipe at: White Wine Garlic Butter Sauce Mussels
2. Mussels and Rice Recipe
This Bulgarian-style dish combines mussels, rice, vegetables, and fresh lovage in a savory meal inspired by the cooking traditions of Bulgaria’s Black Sea coast. We use the liquid released by the mussels to cook the rice, giving it a rich seafood flavor. Some mussels stay in their shells, while others are removed and mixed into the rice.
What We’d Serve This With 🥗
A simple cucumber and tomato salad with olive oil and vinegar makes a fresh accompaniment to the warm mussels and rice. The crisp vegetables provide a pleasant contrast to the softer texture of the rice.
Get the recipe at: Mussels and Rice Recipe
3. Mussel Soup
Our mussel soup has a light, gently creamy broth with tender rice, mussel meat, fresh lovage, and Bulgarian yogurt. We cook the mussels separately with garlic and lovage, then strain their cooking liquid into the soup. The mussel meat goes back in at the end, so it doesn’t continue cooking while the rice softens. The combination of lovage and Bulgarian yogurt gives this soup its distinctive flavor. It’s a recipe we developed after trying mussel soup at a restaurant near our home.
Get the recipe at: Mussel Soup
4. Mussels & Orzo Salad
This cold mussel and orzo salad combines tender mussel meat with cherry tomatoes, Kalamata olives, red onion, and a mustard-dill dressing. We toss the warm orzo with half the dressing before assembling the salad, then refrigerate everything for an hour. Each forkful brings a different combination of flavors, from salty olives and juicy tomatoes to fresh dill and tender mussels. It’s a filling salad that works well as a meal on its own.
Get the recipe at: Mussels & Orzo Salad
5. Fried Mussels Recipe
These fried mussels have a lightly golden exterior while staying tender and juicy inside. There’s no heavy breading or thick sauce to cover their natural flavor. We cook the mussels first, remove the meat from the shells, and briefly pan-fry it in butter and olive oil. After experimenting with the cooking time, we found that a short fry gives the best texture.
Tips from Our Kitchen 🍋
Drain the cooked mussel meat and pat it dry before adding it to the pan. This helps reduce splattering and makes it easier to give the mussels a lightly golden finish without frying them for too long.
Get the recipe at: Easy Fried Mussels Recipe
6. Lemongrass Coconut Steamed Mussels
Lemongrass and coconut milk give these steamed mussels a fragrant, creamy broth with a Southeast Asian-inspired flavor. It’s a good choice if you prefer aromatic sauces to the more traditional combinations of garlic, butter, and white wine.
Preparation Tip
Lightly bruising the lemongrass before cooking helps release its aroma into the coconut broth. It’s a useful preparation step when working with fresh lemongrass.
Get the recipe at: Savor the Best
7. Spanish Mussels Recipe with Paprika & Tomatoes
Tomatoes and smoked paprika give these Spanish-style mussels a savory sauce with a smoky character. Serve them with crusty bread if you want a dish where the sauce is just as important as the seafood.
Get the recipe at: Spain on a Fork
8. Steamed Mussels With Bacon & Beer
This recipe combines mussels with bacon and beer for a heartier alternative to classic wine-steamed mussels. The bacon adds a savory element, while the beer forms the base of the cooking broth.
What We’d Serve This With
Crusty bread or fries would make a good accompaniment to the savory beer broth. Both work well for a relaxed, casual meal.
Get the recipe at: Kitchen Swagger
9. Baked mussels
These baked mussels are served on the half shell with a seasoned topping that develops a golden finish in the oven. Unlike steamed mussels served in broth, they’re easy to offer as individual appetizers.
Get the recipe at: Caroline’s Cooking
10. Mussels Pasta in Tomato Sauce
Mussels and pasta come together in a tomato-based sauce for a satisfying main course. The pasta makes this a more substantial meal than a bowl of steamed mussels, while the tomato sauce provides a familiar Mediterranean-style flavor.
What We’d Serve This With
A simple arugula salad with lemon dressing would provide a fresh contrast to the tomato sauce. It’s an easy way to round out the meal without adding another heavy dish.
Get the recipe at: Ahead of Thyme
11. Red Thai Curry Mussels
These mussels are cooked in a Thai red curry broth with a spicy, aromatic character. They’re a good choice if you want something bolder than traditional steamed mussels, especially when served with rice to soak up the sauce.
Get the recipe at: Chew Out Loud
12. Creamy Mussel and Saffron Soup
This creamy mussel soup combines saffron, white wine, and a smooth vegetable base, finished with crunchy fennel seed breadcrumbs. Compared with our soup with rice, lovage, and Bulgarian yogurt, it offers a different texture and flavor profile, making it an appealing choice for a special starter.
Preparation Tip
Steeping saffron in a little warm broth before adding it to the soup helps distribute its color and aroma.
Get the recipe at: Between2Kitchens
13. BBQ Thai Mussels
These Thai-inspired mussels bring together grilling and bold, aromatic seasonings. Unlike recipes that steam mussels in a pot of broth, this one offers a different cooking approach. It’s worth considering when you’re planning a seafood meal around the grill.
What We’d Serve This With
Grilled corn or jasmine rice would complement the Thai-inspired seasonings. Rice is particularly useful if the dish includes a sauce worth soaking up.
Get the recipe at: BBQing With The Nolands
14. Creamy Mussels in Gorgonzola Sauce
Gorgonzola gives these mussels a rich, tangy cheese sauce with a much stronger flavor than a traditional wine or garlic broth. This is one for blue cheese lovers who want a creamy seafood dish with a distinctive savory character.
Get the recipe at: The Tasty Chilli
15. Mussels Marinara
Mussels marinara combines shell-on mussels with a tomato sauce flavored with garlic and herbs. It’s a straightforward Italian-style preparation that works well with crusty bread or pasta. Choose this one if you prefer a tomato-based sauce without the added richness of cream.
Get the recipe at: Platings + Pairings
16. Tuscan Mussels with Cannellini Beans and Broccoli Rabe
Cannellini beans and broccoli rabe make these Tuscan-style mussels more substantial than a typical bowl of steamed seafood. The beans add a hearty element, while the broccoli rabe brings a slightly bitter contrast. It’s an interesting choice if you want mussels as part of a complete meal rather than an appetizer.
Get the recipe at: Ask Chef Dennis
17. Garlic Mussels In Sour Cream Sauce
This recipe uses thawed, shelled mussels in a creamy sauce made with sour cream, onion, garlic, and parsley. Unlike recipes that steam fresh mussels in their shells, it’s a quick skillet dish.
What We’d Serve This With
Warm crusty bread would work well with the tangy sour cream sauce. A simple green salad could add freshness alongside the richer dish.
Get the recipe at: Lavender & Macarons
18. Stout Steamed Mussels
These mussels are steamed in a buttery stout broth with garlic, mushrooms, sage, and lemon. The dark beer and earthy ingredients give the dish a deeper, more savory character than traditional white wine mussels.
Get the recipe at: The Perfect Tide
19. Green Mussels with Caramelized Fennel and Shallots
New Zealand green mussels are served in a creamy white wine sauce with caramelized fennel, shallots, and garlic. The fennel adds sweetness, while the larger green mussels make this a distinctive alternative to recipes using smaller black mussels.
Get the recipe at: The Weekday Pescatarian
20. Wine Garlic Mussels with Sausage
This recipe combines mussels and sausage in a white wine and garlic broth. The sausage adds a hearty, savory element that makes the dish more substantial than classic steamed mussels.
What We’d Serve This With
Creamy polenta would make a satisfying base for the mussels and sausage, especially with the wine and garlic broth spooned over it.
Get the recipe at: Garlic & Zest
21. Thai Style Ginger and Garlic Mussels
This Thai-inspired recipe uses thawed, precooked mussel meat in a coconut milk sauce with garlic, ginger, soy sauce, and fish sauce. The mussels are briefly heated in the pan rather than steamed in their shells, making it a different preparation from the other Thai recipes in this collection.
Get the recipe at: Patty Saveurs
22. Mussels with Wine Sauce on Creamy Polenta
These mussels are served over creamy polenta made with goat cheese, alongside sautéed vegetables and a wine-based sauce. The combination turns the seafood into a substantial plated meal rather than a bowl of mussels served in broth.
Get the recipe at: Dishes Delish
23. Steamed Mussels with Ginger Oyster Sauce
Ginger and oyster sauce give these steamed mussels a savory, Asian-inspired flavor. The oyster sauce adds depth, while fresh ginger provides a sharper aromatic note. Choose this recipe if you prefer a savory sauce rather than a creamy or tomato-based preparation.
Get the recipe at: Omnivore’s Cookbook
24. Steamed Beer Mussels With Chorizo
Beer and chorizo give these steamed mussels a smoky, savory character, with tomato, lime, and herbs adding contrast. Compared with the bacon-and-beer recipe earlier in the collection, this version offers a different combination of sausage, acidity, and seasonings.
What We’d Serve This With
A crisp green salad with lemon dressing would balance the richer flavors of the chorizo and beer broth. Add crusty bread if you’re serving the mussels as a main course.
Get the recipe at: Burrata and Bubbles
25. Cheesy Mayo Mussels (Chinese Buffet Style)
This Chinese buffet-style recipe uses frozen New Zealand green mussels on the half shell, topped with a seasoned mayonnaise mixture and mozzarella. They’re baked until the cheese melts and begins to brown, making them a rich appetizer-style alternative to steamed mussels.
Get the recipe at: Grumpy Recipes
26. Steamed Mussels in Tomato Cream Sauce
This recipe combines tomatoes, cream, garlic, shallots, and herbs in a sauce for steamed mussels. It’s a richer alternative to mussels marinara, with cream softening the acidity of the tomatoes. Serve it with crusty bread to make the most of the sauce.
Get the recipe at: Damn Delicious
Which Mussels Recipe Should You Try First?
If you’re cooking mussels for the first time, a simple white wine and garlic preparation is a good place to start. For a more filling meal, try mussels with rice, pasta, or a creamy soup.
If you’re looking for something different, the Thai-inspired recipes offer aromatic spices and coconut-based sauces, while baked and fried mussels make good alternatives to the usual steamed dishes.
There’s no single best way to prepare mussels. The right recipe depends on whether you’re in the mood for a light appetizer, a comforting dinner, or something new to try.