Penn Cove Mussels in Thai Red Curry Broth Serve these mussels to a crowd with bread for dipping, or as a weeknight dinner with the broth and shellfish ladled over heaping bowls of jasmine rice. We get many of our mussels from the Jefferds family at Penn Cove Shellfish. Its operations, in Coupeville, Washington, on Whidbey Island are worth a visit when you're in the Pacific Northwest. SERVes 2 1. In a large saucepan over medium-high heat combine the 1 (15-ounce) can coconut milk, coconut milk, sake, curry paste, garlic, shallot, lime juice, and stirred to blend fish sauce. Bring to a boil, whisking together, then add the mus- ½ cup sake sels. Cover, reduce the heat, and simmer until the mussels open, 2 tablespoons Thai red curry paste 1 tablespoon minced garlic about 3 to 5 minutes. (Discard any that do not open.) Season 1 medium shallot, minced to taste with salt and pepper. Serve with the broth in shallow 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime bowls, sprinkled with the cilantro. juice 1 tablespoon fish sauce 2½ pounds Penn Cove mussels, Use Your Mussels scrubbed and debearded Imagine, for a moment, that your beard was connected Kosher salt and freshly ground to your home. It would be uncomfortable, to say the least. pepper E 1 to 2 tablespoons chopped fresh N But keep clam—the only creature that suffers that misfor- TR cilantro tune is the salty bivalve we call the mussel. The mussels’ É ES Ivar’s Seafood Cookbook Seafood Ivar’s beards, technically called byssus threads, are indeed what connects them to their habitats. Although both wild and farmed mussels have them, the beards are often bigger— 96 97 shaggier, if you will—when the mussels come from the wild. In either case, you’ll need to “debeard” your mussels. First, scrub the shells under cold running water, discard- ing any that are broken or refuse to close when tapped. Just before cooking, use your thumb and first finger to grasp the beard and pull sharply, perpendicular to the mussel, to remove it. It’s no harder to remove than a fake Santa’s beard..