You Should Be Cooking Your Mussels in Beer

When asked what you want to do with a tasty Belgian beer, the first answer you'd probably give is "drink it." But if there's some brew to spare, do your seafood a favor and get it drunk, too.

We're not talking about dumping Chimay into your goldfish tank. That will probably make Bubbles and Winston dead, not happily tipsy.

Nope; this one's for the mussels. See, is one of the great simple pleasures available to us on this big blue marble floating in space. Using a tiny fork to dig out the briny flesh of mussels and alternating with some fat, salty Belgian-style fries dipped in herbed mayo might just be the secret to happiness. But you know what would make this classic dish even better? Adding some beer.

At our Crafted Dinner event at Bidwell in Washington, DC, chef John Mooney came up with this simple but ingenious recipe that infuses fresh mussels with the malty, savory notes of Leffe Blond. Combine that with garlic, shallots, butter, and chopped fresh parsley, chives, and chervil, and you've got yourself a feast fit for an itty bitty fork and a properly crusty loaf of bread.

And of course, you might as well enjoy a beer with it, too.