The absolute best and easiest Mussel Soup that's made Italian-style and comes together in 20 minutes! With gnocchi, roasted red pepper sauce, and fresh torn basil to top off a flavorful seafood soup! This a simple recipe for mussel soup that draws you in with more! So, Get your soup bowls ready!
Serve this delicious soup soup with homemade crusty bread. I recently made this Rosemary Parmesan Bread that is to die for!
I had the inspiration for this recipe from my all time favorite go-to quick dinner in the cold seasons, which is, Gnocchi with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce.
Mussels have a deeper, richer seafood flavor than most other seafood. Making it the perfect partner for a creamy red base.
And boy, oh boy, it did not disappoint. Just look at that closeup (above) of every bite of delicious!
It's a great easy recipe to whip up for a weeknight dinner, date night, or guests!
So get your ingredients together (there isn't many!) and cozy up with this Mussel soup recipe!
Table of Contents
WHERE TO BUY MUSSELS
When choosing mussels, make sure you get them from a trust local fish monger the day you're planning on cooking them.
I received mine from our friends at Taylor Shellfish. The mussels were delivered to my door in great packaging. They were large and juicy!
HOW TO MAKE MUSSEL SOUP
First, gather your ingredients.
The instructions come together easily after that with step-by-step instructions below.
INGREDIENTS
- Fresh Mussels.
- Gnocchi. It's usually in a plastic package placed near other pasta. Gnocchi creates a small bite size chewy pasta that compliments the mussels.
- Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato Soup. This is a creamy tomato and pepper base that is essential to this soup recipe. It's packed in a carton, similar to butternut squash soup, and found in most large grocery stores.
- Red Bell Pepper. If you were in a pinch and didn't have red bell peppers, a good substitute is orange bell peppers.
- Fresh Basil. A handful of chopped fresh basil to serve.
- Gouda is a great option to shave onto each bowl to serve. It's optional but adds another level of cozy to this Italian mussel soup recipe.
STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS
- To a large pot of boiling water, add Gnocchi and cook until they float for about 2 minutes.
- Drain the gnocchi into a colander and set them aside. Return the pot to the stove on medium heat, and sauté olive oil, garlic, onion, red pepper, salt, and pepper. Cook until the onion is slightly golden and red pepper is softened, about 2-4 minutes.
- Add the red pepper soup and turn to high heat until it comes to a boil. Lid on.
- Toss in the mussels and cook with the lid on until they open, typically takes a few minutes. Garnish with fresh basil and gouda to serve.
FAQ
When purchasing fresh mussels, you will need to clean and debeard them before cooking.
After being cleaned mussels will need to be cooked right away, so don't clean too far in advance. This process is fast!
To clean mussels, grab their beard as close to the shell as possible and rip it off. Then rinse and scrub their shell under cold running water. Keep them in a clean dry bowl in the fridge until ready to use.
Mussels are boiled for just a few minutes until they pop open. This takes usually 2-4 minutes, depending on how hot your water or soup base is. Remove them or take them off the heat as soon as they open to avoid them overcooking.
There are a ton of great options to serve alongside, like crusty bread, steamed rice, garlic bread, roasted vegetables, roasted potatoes, spaghetti, risotto, or an appetizer of choice! Serving a seafood charcuterie board alongside for grazing is always a hit.
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TOP TIPS FOR THIS MUSSEL SOUP ITALIAN STYLE RECIPE
- Boil the mussels only until their shells open. If you boil longer, they will get overcooked and become chewy. No one wants that!
- Cooking the gnocchi first and setting it aside will avoid your soup getting starchy.
- DISCARD any mussels that don't open during the boiling process.
OTHER SEAFOOD RECIPES TO TRY
- Stout Steamed Mussels
- Rosemary Parmesan Crusted Fish
- Seafood Boil
- Clam Jalapeno Poppers
- Crab Rangoon
- Crab Dip
Don't forget to send to a friend that loves seafood!
Mussel Soup
Ingredients
- 2 lbs mussels rinsed, scrubbed, and debearded
- 1 pack gnocchi
- 1 carton roasted red pepper and tomato soup
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 yellow onion roughly chopped
- 1 red bell pepper finely chopped
- 6 cloves garlic finely chopped
- salt and cracked black pepper
- handful of basil leaves
- optional: Fresh Shaved Gouda
Instructions
- To a large pot of boiling water, add Gnocchi and cook until they float for about 2 minutes.
- Drain the gnocchi into a colander and set them aside. Return the pot to the stove on medium heat, and sauté olive oil, garlic, onion, red pepper, salt, and pepper. Cook until the onion is slightly golden and red pepper is softened, about 2-4 minutes.
- Add the red pepper soup and turn to high heat until it comes to a boil. Lid on.
- Toss in the mussels and cook with the lid on until they open, typically takes a few minutes. Garnish with fresh basil and gouda to serve.
Notes
If mussels stay closed after cooking, discard them. Store extras in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. *calories are just an estimate.
Terri Zimmerman
I will try this, it sounds delicious!
THE PERFECT TIDE
It's pretty darn delicious!