Thai Lemongrass & Ginger Steamed Mussels
While in Seattle last week I had dinner at the Flying Fish where I had steamed mussels prepared in a way I’d never had them before, Thai style. I was blown away by the flavor and the wonderful accompanying sauce. I shipped home 4lbs of mussels from Pike Place Market so tonight I decided to give it try. Luckily the waiter had been kind enough to give me a rough idea of what was in the dipping sauce and it was fairly obvious what the mussels were steamed in. I found a very similar recipe and adjusted it slightly to fit my needs. I think my version came out just as lovely as the restaurant version.
Thai Lemongrass & Ginger Steamed Mussels
For each lb of mussels:
Ingredients:
- approx. 1 lb. fresh mussels
- 1/2 cup good-quality chicken broth/stock
- 1 stalk fresh lemon grass - see preparation below
- 4-5 inch cube sized chunks of ginger
- 2-3 kaffir lime leaves (if you can’t find, just leave out)
- 1/4 cup white wine
- 1 Tbsp. rice vinegar
- 1-2 fresh thai chilies
- 2-3 Tbsp. fish sauce, to taste
- 1 Tbsp. palm sugar
- 1/2 cup rough chopped fresh cilantro, stems and all (coriander to some of you)
- 1-2 cloves minced garlic
- handful fresh basil (rough chopped)
- lime wedges to serve (optional)
Preparation:
- Rinse mussels under cold water, removing any grit or beards left on them. Reserve in the refrigerator until you’re ready to cook.
- Prepare the lemongrass by removing tough outer leaves and bulb at the end of the stalk. Finely slice and mince the lower 1/3 of the stalk. (If you have a pestle & mortar, you can slice then pound the lemon grass to soften it.) Chop the remainder of the stalk into 2-3 inch lengths.
- Pour chicken stock into a deep pot that has a tight fitting lid. This was a nice opportunity to use our homemade chicken stock cubes from the freezer.
- Add the minced lemon grass (including the stalk segments), ginger, plus the lime leaves. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to a simmer over medium heat.
- Add the wine, vinegar, chilies, fish sauce, sugar, chopped basil and cilantro. Stir to incorporate.
- Turn heat up to medium-high. When sauce is gently boiling, add the mussels. Stir them in, then cover with a tight-fitting lid. Allow to cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Remove lid and gently stir the mussels. If some of them still haven’t opened, put the lid back on and allow to cook 1 more minute. (If they still don’t open, toss them)
- Reduce heat to low and add the garlic, gently stirring it in.
- Remove from heat. Taste-test the broth, adding more fish sauce if not salty enough. If too salty, add a squeeze or two of lime or lemon juice. If too sour, add 1-2 more tsp. sugar. If not spicy enough, add more fresh garlic and/or fresh chili.
- When you’re happy with the taste, scoop or slide mussels into a large serving bowl (or individual bowls). Ladle broth over the mussels Add lemon or lime wedges on the side.
- These mussels are wonderful on their own, or serve with a nice crusty bread to help soak up the juices. A good white or blush wine pairs nicely with this dish. We happened to have brought back a gorgeous Pinot Grigio/Chardonnay blend from Peity Flats in the Yakima Valley which I used in the mussels and also served along side it.
The broth was so good that my dinner companion ate half a loaf of bread sopping it up.
For the dipping sauce you only need about 2 Tablespoons per person. This is the basic formula I used:
1 part fish sauce to 3 parts lime juice
minced garlic
thai chilies
palm sugar
For this batch I mixed approximately:
2 Tablespoons Fish Sauce
6 Tablespoons fresh squeezed lime juice
1 Tablespoon palm sugar
1 Thai Chili
1 clove minced garlic
Yum!
recipes, thai, food, lemongrass, ginger, piety flats, chardonnay, pinot grigio, blend, seattle, seafood, mussels, flying fish, pike place market
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