Steamed Vietnamese Mussels

Steamed Vietnamese Mussels

 Serves 2

Ingredients

• 1 kg mussels
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 2 bashed lemongrass stalks
• 6 lime leaves
• 3 large red chillies
• 3 cloves of garlic, sliced
• 8 Thai shallots, roughly chopped
• 4 tbsp fish sauce
• Almost 500 ml of chicken stock
• 2 spring onions, finely diced on a diagonal or finely chopped chives
• 1 1/2 tbsp palm sugar
• 25g galangal, julienned
• Vietnamese mint
• Vietnamese coriander (optional)
• Sweet basil (optional)

Method

1. Heat oil in a wok. Add shallots, garlic, chillies and lemongrass to release their flavours.
2. Next add the lime leaves and galangal, plus the palm sugar for a caramel sweetness.
3. Then add some stock and simply bring the stock to the boil and add the mussels.
4. Drizzle the fish sauce. Stir well until the flavours are dispersed.
5. Cover and allow the mussels to cook for about 3 to 5 minutes until they open.
6. Finely chop some Vietnamese mint, coriander & basil (optional) and scatter. Stir gently into the mussels and sprinkle with spring onions. Serve hot with rice or crusty bread.