Baked Tahong, Baked Mussel

Baked Tahong, Baked Mussel, is a popular party dish. Baked tahong is a classic alternative cooking method for the ever abundant tahong beside the usual tinolang tahong. It is a simple dish except for the fairly troublesome cooking preparation. The tahong also needs to be cooked in an oven which is also a problem to some who may not have one. As an alternative an oven toaster can be used, I have used it my self in several occasions, otherwise just grill the tahong but you would not get the burnt mark on the cheese toppings. Here’s how I baked it.

Ingredients:

1 kilo large tahong, mussels
1/2 cup butter
1/2 head garlic, finely minced
quickmelt cheese, grated

Cooking procedure:

Wash mussels and place in a container with lid, cover with water and replace lid, let sit for several hours (entire day) to allow the mussels to expel sand and discard sea water, change water frequently and wash and drain. Put the mussels in a large pan, add in 1/2 cup of water, let boil and stirring occasionally until all the mussel shells are open, remove from heat. Separate the mussels from the liquid, discard the liquid and mussels that did not open. Separate and discard the top empty shell, keep aside. In a frying pan melt the butter, add in the garlic and quickly stir cook for a minute, turn off the heat and transfer in a bowl. Line mussels in a shallow baking pan, brush each mussel with butter-garlic mixture and top with grated cheese. Bake for 3 to 4 minutes at 350 deg.F.

See other related clams and mussels recipes:

Tinolang Tahong
Tinolang Halaan
Guinataang Halaan
Spaghetti with Halaan