We bought a bag of mussels today and the ride home is 30 minutes. All of them are now slightly open. Can I still cook/steam them or are they now bad? None of them are wide open. But they are definitely not moving or anything.
2006-11-18 10:05:40 · 8 answers · asked by actresscye 2 in Food & Drink ➔ Cooking & Recipes
I'm going to say 95% that they're fine if you cook them right away. They were cold or on ice, they warmed up in the car like they started cooking, and started opening. That's actually a good sign. What you don't want is the ones that *don't* open after cooking.
I'd still eat them.
2006-11-18 10:10:16 · answer #1 · answered by chefgrille 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Trust your nose. Smell them. If they smell mild and aren't standing WAY far open, they're good. If they're closed, push the shells a bit with your thumb and forefinger to see if they pop apart. You don't want that black mud inside a long-dead one to get in your cooking water. If they were all closed thirty minutes ago, they haven't gone bad in that time.
2006-11-18 12:23:55 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
The only time mussels are bad is when they stay closed after cooking. That means they're dead.
2006-11-18 10:17:39 · answer #3 · answered by SCORPIO 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Good Rule of Thumb: Discard any shells that do not close before cooking, and do not open after cooking.
2006-11-18 11:10:43 · answer #4 · answered by JubJub 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Cook them and if they open fully they should be fine.
2006-11-18 10:23:02 · answer #5 · answered by burbs03 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
run cold water over them and see if they close up. If they will close, they are still alive, if not, toss em. Next time take a cooler.
2006-11-18 10:07:49 · answer #6 · answered by parental unit 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Call the seafood place where you purchased them.
2006-11-18 14:12:16 · answer #7 · answered by margarita 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
they should be fine
2006-11-18 10:08:00 · answer #8 · answered by Mystee_Rain 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋