Midye dolma, Turkish stuffed mussels
Midye dolma are stewed mussels filled with rice, garlic, herbs and spices. They are usually served with a slice of lemon. They are found mainly in the coastal towns, offered both in restaurants and by street vendors for a quick snack. In Istanbul they can be found on almost every busy street.
How are midye dolmas made?
In Turkey, midye dolmas are one of the most popular street foods, they are mussels stuffed with rice flavored with onion, spices, aromatic herbs and served with a squeeze of lemon.
Here is the real recipe for midye dolma.
Ingredients (for 15 rather large mussels): 15 rather large mussels, 100 gr of rice, 2 chopped onions, 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, a handful of pine nuts, a handful of raisins, a handful of chopped parsley, 120 ml of hot water, salt and pepper, 1 lemon.
Procedure: Open the raw mussels, collecting the liquid contained inside the mussel.
In a pan, cook the chopped onion with the oil, add the squeezed raisins after letting them soak in warm water for 15 minutes, the pine nuts and the rice that you have rinsed under cold running water and then drained.
Season by adding salt and pepper and hot water and cook until the rice has absorbed all the liquid.
Let the rice cool, add the chopped parsley, season with salt and pepper if necessary, then fill the mussels by closing them.
Place all the stuffed mussels in a pan, pour water mixed with the liquid from the mussels that reaches halfway up the shells.
Cook over medium heat for about 15 minutes, however, until the rice is cooked.
Let them cool and serve them, eating lemon juice.
In Istanbul we use one of the two shells of the mussel as a spoon to eat the filling.
