Mussels with Thai Basil and Chilies

[=Mark]

Mussels with Thai Basil and Chiles

My current favorite mussel dish is based on a dish served in several local Thai restaurants.

• 1 T vegetable oil
  
• 14 oz coconut milk
  
• 2 tsp thai green curry paste
  
• 1 stem lemon grass, finely chopped
  
• 2 inches fresh ginger, grated
  
• 2 red chillies, finely chopped (or LOTS More...)
  
• 1-1/2 pt chicken stock
  
• 4-1/2 lb mussels, cleaned
  
• 2 T fresh lime juice
  
• 2 lime leaves, finely sliced
  
• 2 handfuls baby spinach or bok choi
  
• 2 T fish sauce
  
• 12 Thai basil leaves, torn
  
• Cilantro, carrot and tomato for garnish
  

Heat the oil in a large heavy based saucepan. Add half the coconut milk, curry paste and stir to combine. Add the lemongrass, ginger and chilli and cook for 3 minutes. Add the chicken stock and cook until the liquid has reduced by half, about ten minutes.

Add the mussels, cover with a lid, and cook over a medium heat for 3 minutes. Fold in the rest of the coconut milk,the lime juice, lime leaves, spinach and fish sauce and cook for 3 minutes more.

Finally fold in the basil and discard any mussels that have not fully opened. Serve with plain rice or noodles.

If you want to get fancy with presentation, remove the mussels, open them and remove mussels from shells, then split the shell halves apart. On small serving plates ladle a few ounces of the cooked coconut milk/basil/lemongrass and stock mixture. Take 7 to 9 mussel shell halves and arrange them in a circle on each plate. Place a mussel into each of the shell halves, then ladle some more of the mixture over the top. Garnish with diced tomato, cilantro sprigs and thin matchsticks of fresh carrot.

Keywords: Seafood

( RG212 )