Mussels cooked in a spicy and aromatic coconut broth with Thai curry flavors.
Steamed Mussels With Thai-Style Coconut-Curry Broth
This recipe uses a standard steamed mussel technique combined with flavors from Central Thailand to create a dish that is pretty much identical to the French version, but whose end results are entirely different. All it takes is some curry paste, some coconut milk, and a few other odds and ends.
Ingredients
- 8 sprigs cilantro, leaves and stems roughly chopped and reserved separately
- 4 medium cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 2 small shallots, thinly sliced
- 1/2 tsp whole coriander seeds
- 1/2 tsp dried Thai chilies or red chili flakes
- 1 tsp zest plus 1 tbsp juice from 1 lime (plus additional limes for serving)
- Kosher salt
- 1 (15 ounce) can coconut milk (do not shake before opening)
- 1 tbsp vegetable or canola oil
- 1 tbsp Thai green curry paste
- 1 tbsp brown or palm sugar
- 1 tbsp fish sauce, plus more to taste
- 2 lbs mussels
- 1 small Thai or Serrano chili, thinly sliced
Directions
- Combine cilantro stems, half of garlic, half of shallot, coriander seed, dried chili, lime zest and a small pinch of kosher salt in a mortar and pestle. Pound and grind until a smooth paste is formed.
- Scoop 2 tablespoons of thick cream from the top of the can of coconut milk and add to a large saucepan. Add oil and heat over medium heat until shimmering and sputtering. Add remaining garlic and shallots, pounded paste, and the store-bought curry paste. Cook, stirring and scraping the paste around the bottom of the pan until very aromatic, about 4 minutes. Add remaining contents of coconut milk can, sugar, and fish sauce. Bring to a simmer and cook until rich and aromatic, about 3 minutes. Season to taste with more fish sauce as desired.
- Add mussels, stir, cover, and cook, shaking pan constantly and peeking every 30 seconds to stir. As soon as all the mussels are open, stir in chopped cilantro leaves, fresh chili, and lime juice. Serve immediately, with additional limes at the table.
- Examine mussels before using. If they’re gritty or have lots of beards (it’ll look like bits of hair coming out from between their shells), scrub them well under cold water and pull out the beards by grabbing them and pulling towards the hinge-end of the mussels. Farm-raised mussels are generally quite clean when they are sold. When examining, discard cracked mussels or open mussels that don’t close when tapped with another mussel.