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Mussel Soup with Lovage and Bulgarian Yogurt
This light mussel soup has a gently creamy broth flavored with the mussels' own cooking liquid, Bulgarian yogurt, and fresh lovage. Rice and vegetables make it satisfying without turning it thick, and the mussels stay juicy because they go in at the end.
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Servings: 6
Ingredients
For cooking the mussels
- 2 lb fresh mussels weighed before cleaning
- 3 Tbsp water
- 3–4 sprigs fresh lovage
- 2 cloves garlic sliced
For the soup
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 small onion finely chopped
- 1/2 cup carrot finely chopped
- strained mussel cooking liquid all the liquid reserved after cooking the mussels
- 5 cups water
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/2 cup tomato blanched, peeled, and finely chopped
- 1/4 cup rice
- 1 tsp salt adjust after tasting the finished soup
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper adjust after tasting the finished soup
- 1/4 cup fresh lovage finely chopped, for finishing
For the yogurt mixture
- 1 egg yolk
- 1/2 cup Bulgarian yogurt
- 1/2 cup light cream about 20–22% milkfat
Instructions
- Clean the fresh mussels.
- Add 3 Tbsp water, 3–4 sprigs of lovage, and the sliced garlic to a pot. Add the mussels, cover, and cook over high heat until the shells open.
- Transfer the cooked mussels to a tray and let them cool enough to handle. Discard any mussels that remain closed after cooking. Strain the liquid from the pot and reserve it. Remove the mussel meat from the shells and set it aside.
- Blanch the tomato, peel it, and chop it finely. Finely chop the onion and carrot.
- Heat the olive oil in a soup pot. Add the onion and carrot, cover, and cook until softened.
- Pour in all the strained mussel liquid and 5 cups water. Add the bay leaf and bring to a boil. Add the tomato, reduce the heat, and cook for 10 minutes.
- Add the rice and cook until tender. Turn off the heat and let the soup cool a little.
- Whisk the egg yolk and Bulgarian yogurt together until evenly combined. Add the light cream and whisk again.
- Slowly add 3 ladles of hot soup to the yogurt mixture, whisking continuously. Add a fourth ladle if needed. Slowly pour the mixture back into the soup, stirring continuously.
- Add the salt, black pepper, cooked mussels, and finely chopped lovage. Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed.
Video
Notes
- If the liquid foams and rises toward the lid while the mussels cook, reduce the heat so it does not boil over.
- Strain the mussel cooking liquid through a fine-mesh strainer so small bits stay out of the soup.
- Cover the cooked, shelled mussel meat with plastic wrap while the soup finishes cooking so it does not dry out.
- Rice usually takes about 18–20 minutes in this soup. Start tasting a few grains after 15–16 minutes and stop cooking when they are tender.
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I do my best to provide you with the nutritional information for recipes but I'm not a certified nutritionist. The nutritional information provided should only be treated as an estimate since it will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
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