"Mejillones Tigre" Stuffed Mussels, a delicious Tapa from the Spanish Sea

This week, I’m sharing a truly unique Spanish tapa you might not have come across before: a croquette served in a mussel shell. Packed with the intense flavour of the sea and a touch of spice, let me introduce you to Mejillones Tigres, or stuffed mussels.

Like many classic tapas, the exact origin of Mejillones Tigres is uncertain, with several regions claiming to be the birthplace of this delicious dish. You’ll find variations across Galicia, the Basque Country, Valencia, and Madrid — each adding their local twist to this mussel-based favourite.

Click and find out the mussels' benefits
Do you know why it is called TIGRE Mussels? It is just because they are spicy. And do you know how are call them if they are too spicy? ANGRY TIGRE Mussels.

Well, today, you are going to learn how to make this amazing recipe.

Stuffed Mussels Recipe

• Prep time 15 min
• Cooking time 25 min
• Total time 40 min

Ingredients

• 2.2 lbs / 1 kg mussels
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced or thinly sliced
• 2 fresh onions (spring onions / green onions or scallions)
• 3 cups / 700 ml olive oil (use light or regular olive oil for frying)
• ¾ cup plus 1 tablespoon / 200 ml milk
• ⅓ cup plus 1 tablespoon /100 ml water
• 3 large eggs
• 1 ⅔ cups / 200 g all-purpose flour
• 2 cups / 200 g breadcrumbs
• Salt, to taste
• Black pepper, to taste
• 1 teaspoon spicy pimentón (Spanish smoked paprika or hot paprika)

Preparation

Cleaning and steaming

1. Wash the mussels with cold water, and remove the hair sticks to the side called "bisos" by pulling with your fingers or with the help of a small knife.
2. Remove the seaweed and anything else stuck to the shell by scraping it off with the knife.
3. Discard any dead or broken ones.
4. When all the mussels are clean, drain them back in the water. At this point, the mussels are clean.

1. Place the mussels into a big pot and pour 200 ml of water into it. Add a splash of extra virgin olive oil and place them over high heat.
2. Cover them with a lid. In a couple of minutes, steam will form inside the pot, and the mussels will begin to open.
3. You can move the pot around to help the process.

1. When the mussels are open, remove them from the heat and allow them to cool.
2. Separate the meat from the shells and strain the juice created by cooking them. Keep the shells and the water filtered to use them later.

Making the Stuffing

1. Pour 100 ml of extra virgin olive oil into a large frying pan and place over medium heat.
2. Add garlic and onion chopped in small dice. Cook it for about 5 minutes or until golden brown.
3. Add 4 tbsp (56 g) of flour and mix with the help of a spatula.
4. Cook the flour for another 3 minutes until lightly toasted.
5. Add the filtered water from cooking the mussels and keep stirring. This step should be done off the heat to avoid lumps.
6. Return to the heat and continue stirring.
7. Add the milk warm little by little and keep stirring and cooking it for another 2 minutes.

1. Add the chopped mussels, a tsp of hot paprika, chopped parsley, salt, and pepper to taste when the mixture is smooth.
2. Cook it for 5 minutes or until it gets the texture of a robust béchamel sauce.
3. Adjust the salt and pepper. Put it in a bowl or tray, and leave it to cool down for half an hour.

Stuffing and breading

1. Take the mussel shells and stuff them with a spoon one by one.
2. Put them on a plate or tray and put them back in the fridge for another hour to allow the filling to cool down and make the breading easier.

1. Prepare three bowls with the shaken eggs, flour and breadcrumbs.
2. Bread them one by one in this order, passing them first for the flour, egg and breadcrumbs, as shown in the photos.

Frying

1. Add enough oil to cover at least half of the stuffed mussels in a frying pan. This way, you can fry it on both sides and save a little bit. But that would also be perfect if you want to put enough oil to cover the mussels and fry them all at once.
2. Put the oil on high heat, and fry the mussels until the breading is golden brown.
3. Ensure the oil reaches about 180 degrees when you start frying so you get a nice crispy coating.

I hope you like this recipe. It is a tapa that takes a little time to prepare, but as you can see, it is very easy to make, and above all, it is delicious. So go ahead and surprise your family and friends with my version of "MEJILLONES TIGRE".