Mussel spread with curry and coconut milk

Creamy mussel spread with a subtle, spicy finish. Made with sustainably-sourced bouchot mussels farmed in Brittany using ancient, traditional methods.

The recipe is inspired by a century-old tradition from the port city of La Rochelle, when spices landed by sailors returning from India were added to moules marinière, the classic French dish where mussels are steamed with white wine, butter, shallots, garlic, parsley and sometimes cream.

Serving tip: spread generously on toast and top with dill, slices of cucumber or radish.

About the mussels:

Bouchot mussels have a creamy texture and unique, delicate flavour. They are farmed using an artisanal method that dates back almost 800 years. The mussels are grown on vertical wooden poles - bouchot poles - that are driven into the seabed. The mussels are from the plankton-rich Breton bays of Pénestin and Cancale where the shellfish thrive in the gentle, salty currents.

Mussels are a highly sustainable food source, and the ones that la belle-iloise sources for its spread have another layer of sustainability. This is because the cannery sources from third-generation mussel farmer, Axel Brière, who heads an association of nearby mussel producers that work with and champion bouchon mussels judged too small to be sold. The organisation saves nearly a third of the region's bouchon mussel production.

About la belle-iloise:

The cannery was founded in the fishing port of Quiberon, Brittany in 1932 by Georges Hilliet, when he was 22 years old. Quiberon was one of France’s key sardine canning hubs, with 14 canneries located there. The cannery was simply called Établissement Georges Hilliet.

Hilliet was a firm believer in quality, artisanal production from the outset and resisted the emergence of mass retailing in the 60s, keeping faith with his own production values. He vowed he’d sooner sell his sardines from a basket on the beach than compromise on quality. The company was eventually re-named la belle-iloise, a tribute to the people of Belle-Ile - the island opposite Quiberon where the sardines are caught.

Today Hilliet’s granddaughter Caroline Hilliet Le Branchu helms the company, continuing her grandfather’s ethos of quality, sustainable production and tinned fish that melds traditional recipes with innovative flair.