My love affair with mussels started on Trebarwith Strand in Cornwall on a sunny May Day weekend, which I’ll share more about in a little bit. Two years ago, we enjoyed a beach day on the Spit with our friends, Doug and Sally, and Sally made us these wonderful Thai Red Curry Mussels. I whipped this up last week at home and so many of you asked for the recipe! I’m delighted to share this fragrant Thai Red Curry Mussels recipe with you.

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My First Experience Trying Mussels

So picture this – a beautiful and SUNNY weekend in Cornwall. The type where you would just fall in love with the picturesque countryside and the family you were staying with. We’d only been dating a week and I was invited down to meet Luke’s large family. I think it was a Saturday, yes, it was, and we spent the most beautiful day on Trebarwith Strand. To this day it’s still a favorite spot. You can read more about Cornwall here. I remember scaling rocks with his family and sweet little nephews and nieces were so good at picking mussels. We collected loads of mussels, which we enjoyed as an appetizer later that night. Luke’s brother, Matt, made a white wine and garlic dish that was wonderful and so perfect with torn French bread.

I remember being so hesitant to try mussels back then, but I couldn’t resist the aroma. It smelled so good! Such a perfect dish and I LOVED them! To this day, it’s still a favorite.

When we lived in London we used to go to Belgos to enjoy their Moules and Frîtes. Belgos was a Belgian restaurant and we used to bring family and friends to devour mussels. I believe all the UK locations closed back in 2020. Since then we’ve enjoyed mussels out in Boston and at various restaurants, but I also really love cooking with them at home.

More About Mussels

Mussels are very good for you. They contribute to good heart health as they’re high in Omega-3 Fatty Acids and low in Saturated Fat.
Mussels have a mild, briny taste of the sea and usually taste like what you cook them with. I love to pair mussels with white wine, chopped garlic, parsley. I also love this Thai Red Curry recipe and love Thai Green Curry too. You can interchange the red curry paste for the green.
They are wonderful when paired with fresh herbs.
Mussels are pretty affordable and I’m able to make a very filling meal for our family on a budget.

Using Fresh Herbs with Mussels

In the summer months, I love having loads of fresh herbs on our back patio. This is the first time we’re growing Thai Basil and I love how fragrant it is in stir-fries and also in this dish. If you don’t have Thai Basil you can definitely use Italian basil but the Thai basil really does add something special.

I also love using fresh cut cilantro. This is also great in guacamole, salsa or summer corn salad. We love cilantro in our home!

One other key ingredient that you can find in the grocery store is lemongrass. It is so fragrant. It’s tangy and sweet and really adds a special lemon burst to this meal.

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Prepping Mussels

This is one area that can potentially put people off cooking with mussels. The prep!

We get our Mussels at Mullaney’s Fish Market and they do a wonderful job of cleaning but I aways wash them and remove any of the beards if they’re still on the mussels. Oh, you may enjoy my conversation with Joby (owner of Mullaney’s Fish Markets).

I inspect all mussels before adding them to my curry sauce. If any are open throw them out. It means they’re already dead and it’s best not to eat them.

Once cooked, if shells are not open we also discard those but we don’t get too many like that.

Cooking and Serving

You will want a dutch oven if you don’t already have one and I personally love Le Crueset’s Dutch Oven. You can cook them over an open grill or you can do this on the stove top, too. Cooking them out on the grill gives it a nice smokey flavor that is just so wonderful in summer.

Mussels cook very quickly, essentially you’re steaming them in the closed pot and then they open. When they’re all open they are ready to devour! The herbs should be added at the very end.

Don’t forget throw away any that don’t open once the mussels are cooked!

We love to serve our Thai Red Curry Mussels with white wine and warm, crusty French bread. It’s lovely to mop up the dreamy broth afterwards too. This Red Curry Mussels recipe is by Bobby Flay and I found it on the Food Network’s site.

Thai Red Curry Mussels with crusty French bread

Look how big some of the mussels are!

Oh, and it’s always a good idea to have extra bowls and extra napkins. The bowl is to discard the shells and napkins are because eating mussels is messy business but so worth it!

These would be perfect for the 4th of July or any after beach / lake party you host in the summer months. I hope you enjoy the recipe!