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Spicy Coconut Mussels With Lemongrass

5.0(559)

Mussels are cheap, delicious and relatively fun to eat: saline, mild and plump little bites. They are also extremely easy to cook, especially if they’ve been farmed (most mussels you find in markets have been). Just give them a good rinse, and they are ready to go. Here the treatment heads in the general direction of Thailand, offering a sauce of coconut milk, lemongrass, garlic and chiles that perfectly frames the sweetness of the meat.

by Melissa Clark

Open original recipe

VietnameseDinner, Weeknight, Main Course

Servings

2 servings

Total time

20 min

Calories / serving

869 kcal

Ingredients (12)

serves

2 tablespoons coconut or safflower oiloil
1 shallot, finely choppedshallot
3 garlic cloves, finely choppedgarlic
1 stalk lemongrass, trimmed (outer layers removed) and finely choppedlemongrass
1/2 to 1 small hot chile (like Thai bird, Serrano, Scotch bonnet or jalapeño), seeded and finely chopped
1 cup unsweetened coconut milkcoconut-milk
2 pounds fresh mussels, rinsed wellmussel
Zest of 1/2 lemonlemon
1 teaspoon lemon juice, or to tastelemon
1/2 teaspoon Asian fish sauce, or to taste
1/2 cup whole cilantro leavescilantro
1 or 2 croissants, split in half.

Instructions (2 steps)

01Heat the oil in the bottom of a large pot until hot. Add the shallot, garlic, lemongrass and chile. Cook over medium heat until soft, about 3 minutes. Add the coconut milk and mussels. Cover with a tight-fitting lid and cook until the mussels have opened, 5 to 7 minutes (discard any mussels that remained closed). Remove from heat, and use a slotted spoon to transfer the mussels to a large bowl, leaving the liquid in the pot. Stir the lemon zest and juice, fish sauce and cilantro into the pot. Taste and add more fish sauce and/or lemon juice if needed (fish sauce provides the salt).