Mussels with cumin sauce

• 1 large onion
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 5-6 tbsps dry white wine
• 2 lb mussels, cleaned
• 1 tbsp sunflower oil
• ½ " ginger, grated
• slivers of green chilli, finely chopped
• ½ tsp ground cumin
• ¼ pt single cream
• juice of half lemon
• 1 tsp tomato puree
• roughly chopped parsley

Remove a 1 zo slice from the onion.

Chop it and set aside for the sauce.

Halve the remaining onion and put into a heavy pan with the celery and wine.

Bring to the boil and add mussels.

Cover closely. After aminute shake the pan.
 
After 2 minutes remove the opened mussels.

Cook until all the mussels have opened.

Shell the mussels.

Discard the large peices of onion.

Scoop out the celery with a slotted spoon and put with the shelled mussels.

Strain and reserve the liquor.

Make sauce.

Heat oil in a heavy pan, add the chopped onion and stir fry until it starts to colour.

Add ginger and chilli then the cumin.

Stir for 1 minute.

Pour in the cream, some of the lemon juice, tomato puree and half the liquor.

Stir well and simmer to thicken and cook through.

Add extra lemon juice or liquor as needed.

When it tastes right add the mussels and heat through.

Serve on six very hot plates garnished with parsley and accompanied by wholemeal and oat bread.
 

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