Mussels in fragrant Thai-style broth - the ultimate weekend treat

Nothing feels more gratifying than to bury your face in your favorite bowl of comfort food after a long day 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 individually, 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.

Preparing the dish using Talley's green shell mussels

Must-have ingredients for any Thai dish

And a not-so-typical one - Anchor butter - for that touch of richness in the broth and to tone down the flavors

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.

Mussels in Fragrant Thai Broth Recipe

Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes
Servings: 5

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.