Thai Mussel

By Leela Punyaratabandhu

5.0

(1)

The broth for this dish is somewhat thin and light, and its flavor is vibrant and refreshing from the fresh pineapple. The savoriness, however, relies on the juices released from live mussels, so, for the best results, don't use frozen mussels. But if you must use them, add 1⁄2 cup bottled clam juice to the pan along with the thawed mussels for better flavor.

This recipe was excerpted from ‘Bangkok’ by Leela Punyaratabandhu. Buy the full book on Amazon.

Serves 4 to 6

Peel and core the pineapple, then cut the flesh into 1-inch cubes. Measure out 5 cups to use; save the rest for another use.

Put the curry paste, shrimp, and coconut cream in a 4-quart saucepan and set over medium-high heat. Stir-fry until the paste is fragrant and the coconut fat separates, about 1 minute. Add the pineapple cubes, coconut milk, and fish sauce, then bring to a boil, lower the heat to a gentle simmer, cover, and cook for 5 minutes.

By this time the pineapple will have released some of its juice and will have softened somewhat. Since it is impossible to know exactly how sour, sweet, or bland the pineapple is, taste the sauce along with a piece of pineapple to get a good idea of how the end result will be. Add the sugar, tamarind, and more fish sauce as needed to achieve a sauce that is primarily sweet and sour with salty trailing closely behind. Stir in the mussels (discard any that fail to close to the touch), add lime leaves, re-cover, and cook until all of the mussels have opened, 5 to 10 minutes, depending on their size. Remove from the heat and discard any mussels that failed to open. Transfer to a serving dish and serve with rice.

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This was delicious but not really a meal unless you were to add a side of v sautéed or steamed veggies. Also, I overdid the tamarind. Would be nice if there were suggested quantities for the "to taste" items.

Lisa E

Kingston, WA

5/17/2023