Cooking without Recipe : Linguini with Mussels in Black Beans Sauce

I love cookbooks. Let me correct that. My husband said I am addicted to cookbooks! The funny thing is, most of the time, I find myself cooking without following a recipe. I love inventing dishes in the same way that I love following already tested recipes. Like this one time when the only thing left in our freezer was a box of cooked New Zealand mussels. I didn't have time to go out and buy something for dinner so I came up with this....

I sauteed 3 cloves of garlic, medium size red onion and 2 thumb size fresh ginger (thinly sliced) in about 1/4 cup olive oil (you can use less). I added 2 tablespoons of  Lee Kum Kee black bean garlic sauce, salt and crushed red peppercorns, a pinch of sugar and about 5 tablespoons water. I added the mussels and simmered for a minute or two in low heat. Once done {when sauce was reduced a little bit}I added the still hot linguini noodles {which I cooked according to package directions}and coated it with the sauce. I then garnished the pasta with chopped coriander leaves. At dinner time, I paired it with dry Riesling.

Happy cooking!