Mussels in fragrant Thai-style broth - the ultimate weekend treat
There is honestly nothing more gratifying than being able to bury your face in your favorite bowl of comfort food in your pajamas after a long week at work. My kind of comfort food needs to be quick and effortless to prepare, yet still brings about the wow factor when served.
I am comfortable handling most meats, but I never had a pleasant experience with mussels. There is something about having to pull off the beard, to scrub them, or even to figure out if they are entirely safe for consumption.
Should I discard the ones that are open?
How would I know if they are damaged?
How do I know if they are still fresh?
I simply could not handle the fuss of having to pick my mussels one by one, which is why I choose Talley's green shell mussels - a box of cleaned, debearded mussels in half shells flown in all the way from New Zealand.
Cooking has never been easier!
The recipe today is heavily inspired by a very similar dish that I've had in Bangkok. I find it amazing how the Thais always manage to come out with flavorful dishes using generous amount of condiments and culinary herbs - something that I wish to emulate through this recipe.
Typical ingredients for any Thai dish
And a not-so-typical one - Anchor butter - for that touch of richness in the broth, while toning down all the crazy flavors that I'll be adding in
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes
Servings: 5
Mussels in Fragrant Thai Broth Recipe
Ingredients
1 box of Talley's Greenshell Mussels
(A)
6 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 red chilies, deseeded and finely chopped
3 sticks of lemongrass, white part thinly sliced
6 kaffir lime leaves
1 large green onion, sliced
1 small ginger, thinly sliced
4 dried chilies, crushed
(B) Broth:
30g Anchor butter
8 cups water
1 cube chicken stock
3 tbsp fish sauce
2 tbsp sesame oil
1 lime, juiced
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 cup fresh coconut milk
(C) Garnish:
Spring onion
Coriander leaves
Cooking Method:
- Heat water to a boil. Add every ingredient in (B) except for coconut milk and leave to simmer for 5 minutes on medium heat.
- Add every ingredient in (A) into the broth. Simmer further for 10 minutes on medium heat to allow flavors to ooze out.
- Add in the coconut milk and let it simmer for 3 minutes.
- Add mussels into broth. Cook for 2 minutes and serve immediately.
- Garnish with (C) and serve hot. Drizzle some fish sauce for the final touch.
Goes perfectly with a glass of Merlot :)
Bon appétit!
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