There are few countries whose cuisine can boast of the exotic allure of Thailand. Fragrant Thai basil, gingery, camphorous galangal & pungent fish sauce provide the aromatics for this quick Thai basil mussel & shrimp stir-fry.
Hands up who is sick of Thanksgiving leftovers. Hopefully by now you’ve got thrifty like I did & turned those leftovers into other recipes – in my case pea & ham soup & wild rice turkey stew. Our freezer is brimming with meals for my husband’s lunch & nights when no one feels like cooking. I needed something light & a little more cosmopolitan than leftover turkey. All snobbery aside, I cannot help my cravings & I turn to my ever favorite food – Thai.
I would quite happily eat seafood every night. What’s not to love? Pound for pound it’s the same price, if not cheaper than most meats; it cooks in a flash & contains fewer calories than your run-of-the-mill meat proteins. Plus it’s so worldly – such a willing companion for globe trotting recipes.
Some South East Asian ingredients may be unfamiliar to people who don’t cook it on a regular basis, if at all. Galangal – a rhizome & cousin of ginger, imparts a flavor like nothing comparable. Along with Thai basil, it’s one of the main flavoring ingredients in this stir-fry. If you feel you simple can’t source galangal or Thai basil – use ginger & regular basil, just know, it won’t be quite the same, though still tasty I’m sure. I’ve found galangal easily in every place I’ve lived in the world so if you have an Asian market near (or far), source it. Galangal freezes so what you don’t use wrap-up & pop it into the freezer. It’ll give you an excuse to make this recipe again.
Until next time, toodles, Lovoni xo
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- 1 tablespoon canola, coconut or peanut oil
- 20 large shrimp (prawns), peeled & deveined leaving tails intact
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- 3 inch (7.6cm) piece of galangal, thinly sliced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 3 small red chilies, thinly sliced
- 1/4 cup grated palm sugar (or brown sugar)
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 2 lb (900g) mussels, beards removed (if necessary)
- 1 large red bell pepper (capsicum), thinly sliced
- 6 oz (150g) small mushrooms, halved
- 1 bunch green onions, trimmed & chopped
- 1 cup fresh Thai basil leaves
- Heat a large wok or frying pan over high heat. Add canola oil & shrimp. Stir-fry 1 to 2 minutes until they just change color; remove from pan.
- Add sesame oil, galangal, garlic & chilies to same wok; stir-fry 1 minute until fragrant.
- Add sugar, soy sauce & fish sauce; stir until sugar dissolves.
- Add mussels & stir-fry until they’re coated in the mixture. Cover & cook 2 minutes or until they’re starting to open.
- Return shrimp to wok with, pepper & mushrooms. Stir-fry for 1 minute or until mussels are open & shrimp are hot. Remove & discard slices of galangal.
- Add green onion & basil leaves; stir-fry until combined.
Welcome to Fresh Hunger – rustic, globally inspired food, peppered with Aussie style. I’m Lovoni – food creative, greedy guts & a lover of all things whimsical.
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