Mydopilafo (Μυδοπίλαφο)
Apr 24th, 2008 | By Peter Minakis | Category: Appetizer, Greek, Main, Meze, Seafood
Today’s entry focuses on mussels. Boy do I love mussels. It’s fitting that I love mussels as my first taste of them was in Thessaloniki, which is known for tons of of dishes that contain mussels.
There’s Mussels Saganaki, there’s Fried Mussels, there’s Steamed Mussels, a soup and many variations in between that diverge from these mothership recipes.
For mussels to flourish in the wild or cultivated, an environment of sea and fresh water must exist and that’s why mussels are only found on shores near where a river empties to the sea.
I had a good chuckle when I read a preamble to a mussels recipe in a Greek cook book. The author stated that mussels are a staple of the Greek Islands. This is boldly false. If you find any mussels on the Greek Islands, they have been transported from Northern Greece (Macedonia).
According to the Food and Agricultural Organization of the UN, the majority of mussels in Greece are cultivated in Macedonia (with the exception of some mussel cultivation in the Saronic Gulf). 
There’s just a couple of more days until Easter and I want to show a famous mussel dish from Thessaloniki…Mydopilafo or Rice With Musssels.
I seen & tried many recipes for this Thessaloniki classic but I’m going to show you a version that’s easy, mild in seafood flavour, Lenten-friendly and as always, delicious.
The key to this dish is of course to use fresh mussels. This rice dish stands head & shoulders above your regular rice dish because of the liqueur that releases from the mussels as they cook.
The next time you see fresh mussels at your fish monger, try Mydopilafo from Thessaloniki, Greece’s second largest city. Think of Athens as “the blonde” and Thessaloniki as “the brunette”.
Blondes might have more fun but brunettes do it better!
Mydopilafo (Μυδοπίλαφο)
(for 4)
2 cups long grain rice
1/2 olive oil
1/4 cup diced red pepper
1/4 cup diced green pepper
1/4 cup diced yellow pepper
1 large, ripe tomato, grated
5 cups of hot seafood/shellfish stock salt and pepper to taste
1 kilo of fresh mussels, cleaned
Pre-heated 400F oven 
- Clean your mussels as per safe guidelines and reserve in the fridge. Rinse your rice and pick out any bad, blemished kernels.
- In a baking dish, add your rice, olive oil, grated tomato, diced peppers and stock and some black pepper stir to incorporate. Resist adding salt until after the mussels have been cooked, as they are naturally salty.
- Place your rice in your preheated oven for about 60 minutes or until most of the liquid has been absorbed.
- Remove your baked rice and fluff the rice to mix the peppers up with the rice. Lay your mussels on the bed of rice and bake for another 5 minutes or until the shells have opened up (discard any shells that have not opened). Toss the mussels and rice to mix the mussel juices with the rice and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.
- Serve hot immediately or use any leftovers as a cold appetizer inside a mussell shell.
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This dish is visually stunning and I bet it tastes great too.
I see you have officially moved your cooking outside Peter. Not sure where the mussels we have here are from at all. They would definitely be excellent in this dish though:D
Brunettes do what better? ;)
Great recipe, Peter, as always.
btw..are you cracking on my bandanna?
At least I’m in good company. Stevie’s playing is nothing to scoff at, huh? :)
I am away for a week and I miss so much.
I’m a maniac for mussels. Love how you prepared individual bites with the rice in each shell.
Beautiful dish Peter! My wife will definitely want me to make this one for her… thanks!
Im a huge fan of mussels as well. Scrumptious!
That looks great Peter! My sister would love this dish! Her favorite seafood is mussels!
this is the 3rd recipe i’ve seen for mussels today. i look it as a sign that summers on the way. these look great. you need to write a ‘how to survive the long lent season by eating well’ cookbook!
Your mussels look great! Such a delectable-looking meal.
I envy your fresh seafood.
I love mussels too, Peter. My favorite way to eat them is in paella. Hmm delicious looking dish!
There is a little something for you here
Great recipe, Peter. I love mussels. One thing though, not all Greek mussels are from Northern Greece, despite what the report says. On the island where our house is there is a large commercial mussel farm as well as wild mussels. The commercial mussels are used locally and shipped around Greece. Also, I grew up on the west coast of the US near the Pacific Ocean. There, mussels grow and flourish in the intertidal areas and on rocks closest to the shore, and there is no fresh water anywhere near.
But hey, this is ultimately about food and recipes, and I’ll go for this mussel recipe any time!
Nice looking mussel dish!
Cake, mussels taste fabulous…essence of the sea.
Val, in Canada there’s usually a tag attached to the sac that comes with.
Maryann…you should know better than anyone! ;)
Lori Lynn, glad you’ re back but I’ll be kinda busy for a couple of days too.
Sam, your wife and you will surely be over when the patio allows.
Courtney…you have good tastes, dahling.
Judy, try some with your sis next time.
Never full, no surprise there are other mussel dishes out there…they are affordable and delish.
Emi, I wish I had some more Mediterranean fish here but alas, it’s still pretty good here.
Ben, mussels make a great addition to Paella.
Laurie, it’s certainly news to me that Limnos has it’s own mussels, good news for seafood lovers.
As for where mussels grow…all around the world (save for fresh water ones), yes they flourish in intertidal area and yes they grown in the Northwest of the US. As in northern Greece, there are rivers nearby, ever so slightly dilluting the sea water. Make no mistake that mussels grow in salt water but a fresh water source is nearby (approx. 40km).
Your mussels dish looks stunning Peter!
Great mussel dish Peter! I love what you did with the leftovers too :)
Soon, soon, the moules will be back in the markets…
Great recipe – and lovely, er, gorgeous presentation….
I’ve never tried, nor heard of, baking mussels…
Gosh, I wish I could get good fresh seafood here!
I don’t usually have rice in my mussels. Just wine, butter, garlic. This looks delicious.
Chico, I’m trying this one!!!! It reminds me of Paella, but in a small taste… it could be like a small kind of paella’s cousin tapa!!!
My fish monger always has fresh mussels and she is around the corner :D :D
This looks like a great dish. I’ve just been starting to cook with shellfish at home, and this looks like a keeper.
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I LOVE mussels and this looks delicious!!!!!!!!!!!!