Summer veg soup with mussels and salsa verde

By: James Martin
From: Home Comforts
Serves: 4
Photographer: Yuki Sigura

This comes straight from my garden and into the bowl (except for the mussels!) and when the summer’s in full swing in the veg garden there are few better soups. Add the salsa at the end to keep all the flavour and colour or, better still, let your guests add as much as they need.

Ingredients

Quantity	Ingredient

For the soup

Quantity	Ingredient
50g	unsalted butter
1	banana shallot, finely chopped
150g	courgettes, cut into 1cm cubes
1	fennel bulb, cut into 1cm cubes, fronds reserved
150g	carrots, peeled and cut into 1cm cubes
100g	celery sticks, cut into 1cm cubes
8	radishes, halved lengthways
500g	mussels, scrubbed, beards removed, (see note)
150ml	white wine
750ml	vegetable stock

For the salsa verde

Quantity	Ingredient
2 tablespoons	roughly chopped mint leaves
2 tablespoons	roughly chopped dill fronds
2 tablespoons	roughly chopped tarragon leaves
2 tablespoons	roughly chopped flat-leaf parsley leaves
2 tablespoons	roughly chopped watercress leaves
2 tablespoons	torn basil leaves
1	large shallot, roughly chopped
6	anchovies, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons	capers, drained and rinsed
1/2	lemon, juiced
1 teaspoon	dijon mustard
4 tablespoons	extra virgin olive oil, plus more to store, if needed

Method

Heat a sauté pan until medium hot, add the butter and all the vegetables and sweat over a low heat until just softened, about five minutes.
Add the mussels, wine and stock and bring to the boil, then cover and simmer for two or three minutes until all the mussels have opened. Discard any that fail to open.
Meanwhile, make the salsa verde. Place all the chopped herbs into a food processor and blitz to roughly chop, then add the shallot, anchovies, capers, lemon juice, mustard and oil and blitz to a slightly chunky purée. Season with salt and pepper.
Remove the soup from the heat, then stir 2–3 tbsp of salsa verde in, check the seasoning and serve immediately, with the rest of the salsa on the side.
Any leftover salsa verde should be decanted into a sealable container, covered with a thin layer of oil and kept in the fridge for up to four days.

Note

Wash the mussels in a colander to remove any dirt or grit and discard any of the beards (the tufty bits on the mussels). If you want to be fussy, scrape off any little barnacles with an old butter knife, too. Throw away any mussels that are not firmly closed, and don’t shut when tapped firmly on the side of the sink.

Tags:: James Martin; Saturday Kitchen; comfort food

Summer veg soup with mussels and salsa verde

Ingredients

For the soup

For the salsa verde

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