Mussels for dinner

So....tonight was a learning experience indeed....I have never ever tastes or cooked mussels before.  I read about mussels, I talked to my brother in law the chef and I came up with a recipe.  It was a learning experience.  Thank you to my east coast friend who helped guide me in terms of whether they were cooked or not.  My kids both tasted the mussels and were not fans, interesting textures.  I read on the internet about how to store, how to cook, I looked at different recipes too.  I created a recipe that was fantastic using the inspiration of others.  It took a few times before actually having the mussels cooked properly, my friend who is always very critical of my cooking was dining with me and is also a seafood lover.  Which means I will know if the recipe is good and if I cooked it well.  


Teresa's Mussel Marathon in a curried coconut lime ginger soup


-6 pounds of mussels, washed, and scrubbed
-1 onion minced
-3 cloves of garlic chopped
-3 tablespoons ginger grated
-5 lime leaves
-3 tablespoons thai curry (yellow)
-1 tablespoon chili powder
-1 cup white wine
-juice and zest of of 2-3 key limes
-pepper
-2 tablespoons soya sauce 
-pepper to taste
-cilantro and green onions to garnish


I started by a little butter in my Dutch oven, I sautéed an onion in the butter until soft, I added garlic and grated ginger.  I added a can of coconut milk, lime leaves and the juice and zest of 3 key limes.  Soy sauce was added about 3 tablespoons of Thai yellow curry, chili powder and wine and I allowed to simmer on low for an hour.  In the sink I washed and scrubbed my mussels.  I let the soak for 20 minutes before scrubbing. I turned the mixture up high and allowed to boil, I added the mussels.  (I cooked for 10 minutes and realized that medium heat was not high enough and that is why I recommended high heat)  You need to make sure that you discard any shells that did not open up and also when cleaning get rid of broken or damaged shells.  The mussels also added a great deal of broth.  I also realize that I should have cooked the mussels in smaller batches.  The meal was amazing, we had our fill and were satisfied


Life is about these moments, where we overcome our fear of new experiences and realize that we are better for the experience.  I want to say thank you to my friend for his patience and criticism as he has helped me to develop my cooking, encouraging me to take risks and to have new experiences with me and to help foster my love of cooking...not to mention the conversation and wine.