Clean the shells, remove the beards and wash well. Steam in a pot with the wine until the shells open. Discard the mussels whose shells did not open. Keep 5-6 mussels in their shells for garnish and remove the shells from the rest.
Sauté the onion, garlic and chilli pepper in the oil. Add the mussels and all the ingredients except for the rice and salt and pepper. As soon as the sauce comes to a boil, pour in the rice and water to make the pilaf (you can also use the juice used to steam the mussels but you must strain it first).