Applewood Smoked Mussels

These Applewood Smoked Mussels are a spectacular dish you will make often.

Ordering Straight from the Source

Over the years we have ordered seafood from Prince Edward Island. We have enjoyed everything from lobster to incredible fresh scallops and mussels. You can go to any big city and purchase seafood in a variety of locations. Once you order seafood from the coast you will find that the level of freshness is not even comparable to store bought.

Prices are very good, and you will find that flying in seafood is not expensive. Depending on what you are ordering, many of your items are fished fresh and shipped out the next day. Most seafood you find in local stores has had a long journey to get there ultimately effecting the freshness of the product.

There are many companies that ship across Canada, check out the retail guide below for websites. Not all products are available year-round. Plan ahead to shop for what you want during their particular seasons.

Seafood Companies in Prince Edward Island

When I order seafood from Prince Edward Island MR Seafoods has been great. They have the freshest products, great prices and spectacular customer service.

They direct ship to Edmonton and it is a very easy pickup at the international airport. Everything is packaged in coolers and arrives icy cold. The link below will take you to their website.

MR Seafoods – Located in Charlottetown, PEI 

For a more detailed list of seafood retailers and information on the specific seasonal availability see the Prince Edward Island Seafood Retail Directory

 

Smoking Seafood

The adventures with the smoker continue as we delve into smoking seafood. I have smoked salmon and whitefish in the past with incredible results.

It is important to keep in mind with fish or seafood is that it is quite delicate and is treated a differently than beef and pork. We use cooler temperatures and shorter smoking times to avoid over cooking.

For this recipe we will steam the mussels first before putting them in the smoker. The steamed mussels are placed on a perforated tray that goes into the smoker. You can find them in the bbq section of your local hardware store.

How To Steam Mussels

Place butter in a large pot and heat over medium heat. Once melted add the garlic, wine and water and bring to a boil. Add the mussel to the pot, cover and steam for 5 – 8 minutes.

If there are any shells that did not open, they are not edible and need to be thrown out.

 

Prepping the Mussels for Smoking

Once everything has cooled, remove the mussels from the shells. Place the mussels on a perforated tray made for use in a bbq.

Getting the Smoker Ready

You will want to use a more mellow wood chip when smoking mussels. We like to use apple and cherry woods for most smoking applications.

Start the smoker up and set it at its lowest temperature. Using the water tray will also help keep the temperature down a bit. I used water in the tray for this recipe.

Place the tray of mussels on the top rack of the smoker and smoke for 2 hours. After 2 hours remove the tray from the smoker.

Selecting an Oil

Once smoked, the mussels are stored in a jar and covered with oil. I use canola oil, go with your favorite oil for this step.

Layer the smoked mussels in sterilized canning jars and cover with oil. Cover and store in the fridge.

Smoked mussels can be enjoyed for up to a week.

Applewood Smoked Mussels

 

I enjoy lightly salting them before serving.

If you are looking for other smoked seafood recipes, be sure to check out the Canned Smoked Whitefish recipe, it is a fabulous way to preserve the fish.

And this Smoked Maple Canned Salmon turned out incredible and is the perfect way to feature beautiful BC salmon.