There is one dish that represents Puglia more than any other. Not pasta, not bread — it is the tiella. Rice, potatoes and mussels layered and slowly baked in the oven until the flavours of the sea and the land merge into something extraordinary. My grandmother always said you could tell immediately if the mussels were not from that morning — the smell gave everything away.
Ingredients
Serves 4
- 1 kg fresh mussels
- 300g short-grain rice (Originario or Carnaroli)
- 500g yellow-flesh potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced (3-4mm)
- 300g cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 large white onion, thinly sliced
- 3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
- A generous handful of fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
- 80g Pecorino Romano, grated
- Extra virgin olive oil — generous
- Salt and black pepper to taste
- 400ml mussel water and plain water combined
Method
Clean the mussels
Scrape the mussels under cold running water and pull out the beard. Open each one with a small knife, keeping the mollusc on one shell. Filter and keep all the liquid they release — it is liquid gold for this dish.
Prepare the rice
Put the rice in a bowl and cover with cold water for 30 minutes. Drain well. This key step helps it cook evenly without absorbing moisture too quickly.
Layer the tiella
In a deep round baking dish, pour a generous drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. First layer: half the sliced potatoes. On top: half the onion, half the garlic, salt, pepper, parsley and a dusting of Pecorino. Then spread all the rice evenly. Add the cherry tomatoes. Arrange the mussels on top of the rice with the mollusc facing upwards. Cover with the remaining potatoes, onion, garlic, generous parsley, plenty of Pecorino and a good drizzle of olive oil.
Add the liquid
Mix the filtered mussel water with plain water to make about 400ml total. Pour it around the edges of the dish — never directly on top, to avoid ruining the Pecorino crust.
Bake
Preheat the oven to 200°C. Cover the dish with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and continue for another 20-25 minutes until the surface is golden and crispy and the rice has absorbed all the liquid. Rest for 10 minutes before serving.
My tips
- The mussels must be very fresh — this dish does not forgive any compromise on fish quality.
- The potatoes must be sliced very thin, otherwise they stay raw in the centre.
- Do not add too much liquid — the rice must absorb it all, not boil in it.
- If the rice still seems undercooked but the liquid is gone, add a little hot water and cover with foil.
- Leftover tiella, reheated in the oven the next day, is even better.
Leave a comment
Did you try this recipe? Do you have a memory, a variation or a question? Write to me — I read everything and reply personally.