Moules farcies Arméniennes ou Midia Dolma

Serves 4/6 1.5 kg large Spanish mussels 800 g onions (5/6 onions) 120 g short-grain rice 30 g toasted pine nuts 120 ml sunflower or rapeseed oil 1 teaspoon salt Several turns of the pepper mill 1 heaped tablespoon allspice Preparation in 4 steps: Step 1: Prepare the mussels: Wash, trim, and open the mussels using a sharp knife, breaking the nerve without separating the two shells. Recover the water from the mussels by filtering it and set aside. Step 2: The stuffing: In a sauté pan, add the finely chopped onions and 2 glasses of water (250 ml). Bring to a boil, cover, and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes. Uncover and cook until the water is absorbed. When the onions have absorbed the water, add the oil, salt, pepper, allspice, rice, and pine nuts. Simmer for 10 minutes, adding 3 tablespoons of the mussel water. The rice should begin to cook to release some of the starch. Step 3: Stuff the mussels: Let the stuffing cool. Fill each mold with 1 tablespoon of stuffing and press the 2 shells between your fingers to make the stuffing adhere to the shells, which will then stick together. The starch in the rice will make the stuffing sticky. Step 4: Cooking In a sauté pan, arrange the stuffed mussels side by side, tightly packed, on 2 layers. Pour in 4-5 tablespoons of the mussel water. Place a plate upside down on top of the mussels. Cover, bring to a boil, and cook, covered, over medium heat for 20 minutes. Place the mussels in a dish and let them cool before serving. They will be even more tender after a few hours in the refrigerator.