I love this mussel recipe as it's a perfect example of the simplicity of my mum's home cooking that I grew up on. Very few ingredients, simply put together and lovingly cooked.

I often draw inspiration from some of my favourite dishes she cooks, and elements of them in my restaurant creations. The mussel moily recipe here, gets a make-over with smoked haddock, shrimps, etc. And gets turned into a Keralan style seafood pie at Cinnamon Soho...set to open in mid March so watch this space!

Recipe

Serves 4

2 tablespoons vegetable or corn oil

4 garlic cloves, crushed

2.5cm/1inch piece of fresh ginger, crushed

1 sprig of fresh curry leaves

12 tomatoes, cut in half

¼ teaspoon ground turmeric

¼ teaspoon red chilli powder

1 ½ teaspoons tamarind paste

800ml/ 27fl oz/ 3 cups fish stock or water

1 teaspoon black peppercorns

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

50g/ 2oz/ ¾cup fresh coriander roots, washed

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon sugar

400g/ 14oz fresh mussels

To garnish:

1 Tomato, deseeded and cut into 5mm/ ¼ inch dice

1 tablespoon chopped fresh coriander

For tempering:

1 tablespoon vegetable or corn oil

¼ teaspoon mustard seeds

2 dried red chillies, split in half

10 fresh curry leaves

A small pinch of asafoetida (optional)

Heat the oil in a large saucepan, add the crushed garlic and ginger and sauté for 1 minute. Add the curry leaves and halved tomatoes and cook until the tomatoes are soft. Stir in the turmeric, chilli powder and tamarind and cook for 2 minutes. Pour in the stock and bring to a simmer. Meanwhile, coarsely crush the peppercorns and cumin seeds together in a pestle and mortar. Add them to the simmering stock with the coriander roots and cook for 20 minutes. Strain the broth through a fine sieve into another pan, pressing down on the mixture to extract all the liquid. Stir in the salt and sugar.

Clean the mussels under cold running water, pulling out the beards and discarding any open mussels that don’t close when tapped on the work surface. Bring the soup back to the boil, add the mussels, then cover and simmer for about 2 minutes, until they open. Remove from the heat and stir in the diced tomato and chopped coriander.

Now quickly temper the soup. Heat the oil in a small pan until very hot, then add the mustard seeds. They should crackle immediately. Add the red chillies next, followed by the curry leaves and the asafoetida, if using, then quickly plunge the mixture into the hot soup. Serve immediately.

Mother's Day recipes