Here’s another mussel recipe. I think this makes 5 different mussel recipes on the blog now. We just can’t help it. We like mussels a lot and this spicy Thai inspired dish truly fits the bill for a quick and simple, wonderful, evening meal. Don’t just take our word for it give it a try. 🙂
OK, in prior posts I explained how Baby Lady loves her mussels. It may well be her very favorite food. We’ve also discussed how mussels are farmed, that they provide great health benefits and have a wide variety and range of habitat. So, there really isn’t much for me to say, other than read the prior posts on mussels if you didn’t know any of this. 😉 What I can tell you is that because Baby Lady loves mussels, we eat them fairly regularly. As such, we are always trying new ways of preparing them. Baby Lady loves coconut and I love Thai food, in general, and especially red Thai curry paste. There is something about that coconutty, spicy, earthy yet tangy Red Thai curry that just makes my hear sing. Inasmuch as Baby Lady was hankerin’ for some mussels, I decided to try a Thai twist on them and I’m sure glad I did. This mussel dish is fabulous. If you like red Thai curries, you will love these mussels. This is what we did.
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 4 cups chopped onion
- 2 Tbsp finely chopped peeled fresh ginger
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1-2 jalapeño pepper, stemmed, seeded and diced (small dice)
- 2 Tbsp red curry paste (preferably homemade – recipe here)
- 2 cup coconut milk
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 1 Tbsp honey
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 4 lb mussels, scrubbed and debearded
- 1-1/2 cup basil leaves, chopped and divided
- 3 limes, zested and juiced
- lime wedges, for garnish on the side
Instruction
Heat a large pot over medium-high heat and add oil.
Now, add the onions
the ginger
garlic
and now the jalapeño.
Sweat the onions for 3 – 4 minutes until the onions begin to just soften.
Now add the curry paste (I ran out of homemade so I had to use store bought. 😦 The flavors would have been much brighter and more pungent with homemade red thai curry paste.)
Cook another minute, stirring so as to avoid it scorching, and add the lime zest
coconut milk
white wine
honey and salt
Bring mixture to a boil and cook for 2 – 3 minutes.
Now add the mussels.
Cover and cook 5 minutes or until mussels open. Remove from liquid discarding any unopened shells.
Add 1 cup chopped basil
and the lime juice. Bring back to a boil and remove from the heat.
Pour the coconut red thai curry sauce over the mussels.
Sprinkle the remaining basil over the top.
Serve with lime wedges and enjoy.
NOTES: Everyone has their own spicy heat tolerance. If your red thai curry has a considerable kick, use less jalapeño. If it has less kick, add more. If you can’t take the heat, omit the jalapeño or substitute small diced bell pepper. It’s up to you. I seed the jalapeños but leave in as much ribbing as possible. It’s the ribbing (not the seeds) that has the greatest amount of capsicum that provides the heat. If you seed the jalapeños and remove the ribbing, the jalapeños will have very little heat, if any. The amount of jalapeño used in this dish looks like a lot and it provided quite a kick but I used 2 very large jalapeños which, when diced, yielded probably 1/3 cup. Most people would use half the jalapeño in the photo but, hey, some like it hot. 😉
REMCooks 
I wish I could still eat mussels. But I developed a violent allergy to them. This looks really good too.
That really bites. I had food allergies as a child (chocolate) and thankfully outgrew them. Tell a 6 year old child he can no longer eat chocolate. 😦 As an adult, my mom developed an allergy to shellfish, i.e. shrimp, lobsters, etc. You have my sympathy.
Oh being allergic to chocolate would be horrible! It’s strange, I can eat shrimp, lobster, etc but not mussels. And it’s so bad I’ll never try again. Tried twice as I couldn’t figure out what caused it. Now I know! If lobster shell cuts my skin I get a bit of a reaction but I can eat it. Good thing as I love lobster!
Be careful. From what I have read, if you develop an allergy to one shellfish, you are prone to developing allergies to ALL of them. 😮
I’ve heard that but fingers crossed it’s been nearly 10 years now and nothing new. Here’s hoping it stays that way!
Ditto. 🙂
You’ve just inspired me to prepare mussels differently for a change. (I always make them with pasta and broccoli, or in a mixed seafood dish like paella). I’ll check out all five recipes and pick one that I like best 🙂
Thanks, Stefan. 🙂 I would wait about 7 – 10. You have a package coming that might be of interest to you. 🙂 But then again, it might not. 😉
I was wondering about that. Was worried that it had gotten lost in the mail, but thought it a bit rude to inquire ask about it 😉 Now I’m curious!
Sorry, I had to travel to get some of the things, then Daniel came home and I had to make a few things. I’m trying to get it shipped by Wednesday this week.
Now I am *really* curious 🙂
I would be, too. 😉
I love the approach Richard. I would be a traditional steam in white wine kind of a guy. This has opened my shell as it were. Great pouring shots (as if I need to tell her).
Thanks, Conor. We love doing mussels different ways and this was great. I’m not so sure Baby Lady will be pleased you think my pouring shots were hers. 😮 You can tell the ones Baby Lady caught because it has both of my hands in it. 😉
Oops!
I’m vegetarian so I might replace the mussels with Aubergines (eggplants), mushrooms or tofu.
Those would work fine. You might want to try firm tofu, the small chinese eggplant and some coarsely chopped tomatoes.
I’m not a great fan of mussels but this tempts me…..
If done right, mussels are a wonderful meal. They have a stronger flavor that holds up well with Thai curries. Fix them as an appetizer for a dinner party. That way if you find you still aren’t a fan of mussels you won’t have s many to eat. 😉
I’m a big mussels fan, too, Richard, but mine usually are served in some sort of pasta. I like that you went Thai this time and I’ll need to check this out. By the way, that giant bowl of mussels is about as enticing as a bowl of mussels can be. 🙂
Hi, John. We like mussels with pasta. The broth that you get from the mussels is so flavorful that you definitely need something to make sure you get the very last drop. Baby Lady, however, loves crusty breads. So, more often than not we serve them simply in a bowl with a nice crusty loaf of bread on the side. You can also shell the mussels for those people who don’t want to play with their food, make the broth a little thinner and serve them as a soup. They really are pretty versatile. 🙂
oooohhhh yummm i’ll have to try this recipe soon!
Thanks for the nice compliment. We hope you do. 🙂