Fisherman's Bread

⏳ Time

20 minutes

🥕 Ingredients

🍽️ Servings

Description

The most traditional recipe for fisherman's bread — forgotten bread and seawater to salt and soak it. The chef of a local seafood restaurant added a few twists and adapted it to conditions where seawater can be found in closed shells of mussels.

Ingredients

Semolina - 1 piece
Pasta shells - 10.6 oz
Tomatoes - 2 pieces
Garlic - 1 clove
Mild Chili Spice - 1 piece
Olive Oil - 1 fl oz
Fresh basil leaves - 2 stalks
Parsley - 3 stalks
Salt - to taste
Ground Black Pepper - to taste

Step by Step guide

Step 1

Finely chop two medium tomatoes, sprinkle with salt, add a little olive oil, and crushed basil, then let it sit for about fifteen minutes to allow the tomatoes to release their juice. Grate a semolina breadstick on the sides with a peeled garlic clove, making sure the breadstick is as hard and dense as possible.

Step 2

Place the toast in a deep plate and pour tomato juice over it. Occasionally, use a spoon to scoop the juice from the bottom of the plate and drizzle it over the bread. By the time the mussels are ready (which will take about seven minutes), the bread will have softened enough to be enjoyable, while still remaining crispy inside.

Step 3

Crush the garlic with a knife. Pour some oil into a saucepan, add the garlic, parsley stems, and a few slices of hot pepper, then place it over the heat. Once the garlic becomes fragrant, add the mussels to the saucepan, cover with a lid, and cook while shaking or stirring the contents. After a few minutes, the mussels will open up and release their flavorful sea water.

Step 4

Pour the dried bread with the mussel juice along with garlic and pepper. You can discard the parsley stems, and sprinkle the bread with fresh leaves. Top with sliced tomatoes. Season to taste with salt, freshly ground black pepper, and the remaining olive oil.

Step 5

Scatter the opened mussels over the plate with the breadcrumbs. You can remove half of them from their shells (it's convenient to use one of the empty shells for this, as it has a sharp edge), while the other half can be left in their shells – and let the diners feel free to dig in with their hands.