Mussels with Pancetta and Linguini

Mussels with Pancetta and Linguini began as a spur-of-the-moment craving and quickly morphed into a seriously delicious dinner.

Hello. My name is Tim, and I’m a shellfish addict. Sometimes I simply can’t control my urges for shrimp, scallops, lobster, or clams—and today, those impulses were triggered the moment I walked past the seafood counter and spotted a bag of gleaming mussels.

I snagged the last of them, along with a gorgeous piece of pancetta (a rare treasure in the Ozarks). From there, the rest of the dish fell into place, a few simple seasonings and the promise of a nice chunk of crusty bread to mop everything up.

I knew from the start that the pancetta would get crisped, its luscious fat rendered down to sauté and season the shallot and garlic waiting at home. Then inspiration struck again: a jar of Thai red curry paste—warm, aromatic, sweet, and just the right amount of bold—offered itself as the backbone of the sauce. It all came together in my head far faster than most recipes ever do.

The final flourish was adding fine bronze die-cut semolina Italian linguini, letting it drink in that rich, fragrant sauce before crowning it all with the steamed mussels that started the whole adventure.

Ready to Make Mussels with Pancetta and Linguini?

Soak, sort, de-beard and clean the mussels carefully and bring a pot of well salted water to a boil.

Place the pancetta in a non-stick skillet over medium heat to render the fat – about 3-4 minutes, until the pancetta is very lightly crisped. Strain out the pancetta with a slotted spoon, reserve and set aside.

Place 2 tablespoons of the rendered fat in a deep saute pan. Add the olive oil and 1 TBL of unsalted butter

Start the linguini and boil. Reserve 2 cups of the pasta water. Remove and drain the linguine 2 minutes short of the manufacturer’s instructions – it will finish in the saute pan

Place the shallot in the saute pan over medium heat and cook 1 minute while stirring, then add the garlic and cook 1 minute more until the shallot is soft. Add the white wine, lemon juice, a half cup of pasta water and mussels to the saute pan. Cover and steam over medium-high heat. Shake the pan occasionally until the mussels have opened, about 5-8 minutes. Discard any that remain closed. Remove the mussels and reserve them in a covered pot to keep them warm

Add the remaining butter to the pan with the diced tomatoes, thai red curry paste. Stir to combine and add the linguine.

Stir and cook over medium low heat- about 2 minutes to finish the pasta. Add more pasta water if it becomes too dry. You should have enough broth to generously coat the linguine.

Stir in half the chopped parsley and adjust the salt to taste

Remove half the mussels from their shells and stir them into the pan, or plate and serve all of them in the shells at your discretion. Garnish with the remaining parsley and serve with a crusty baguette Print