PBR Beer Can Mussels Recipe From Steve McHugh Of Cured In San Ant

Make buttery, beery bivalves like Cured's Steve McHugh

"Much as I love craft beer, PBR is one of those beers that actually tastes like beer," says chef Steve McHugh. "And it's the beer I used to steal from my dad."

McHugh isn't trying to be ironic by adding the now-infamous-hipster drink of choice to his beer can mussels (see the recipe): His San Antonio restaurant, Cured, is housed in the city's iconic Pearl Brewery, which once produced the 170-year-old canned beer.

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McHugh spent 12 years working for John Besh, both in New Orleans and Texas. Cured, which opened last year, is his first solo project. The restaurant's name has a double meaning for the chef, who spent a year fighting lymphoma with chemotherapy before getting a clean bill of health in 2011.

"My wife and I came out of that experience and just thought, 'Let's do something for ourselves,'" he says.

That something translates to a charcuterie-heavy menu–and the second meaning of Cured. McHugh breaks down whole animals to make delicious salty things, like smoked vealwurst and smoked duck ham, joking, "I'm always looking for non-pork items."

Pork does make an appearance in the mussels, in the form of house-made tasso. Like the rest of his menu, the mussels are pretty simple, but simply delicious. Green garlic, onion and tomato add brightness, while a finishing hit of butter smoothes out the beer-based sauce.

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"Mussels crave that little bit of creaminess," McHugh says. "It's rarely about the seafood–it's more about the sauce."

The greenhouse-like charcuterie room at Cured in San Antonio, TX.

Chef Steve McHugh prepping ingredients for his PBR-bolstered mussels (get the recipe).

Jars of lemon and thyme moonshine at the restaurant.

Another surprisingly, non-pork product: beet cracklins. McHugh tosses them in an avocado and citrus salad.

Don't worry–the restaurants stocks more than just PBR. Here, Champagne chilling.

Beautiful whipped lardo with charred bits of bread.

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