A happy mistake: Clams and mussels in lemongrass and coconut milk broth

Last week, I was too sick to prop my head up and watch movies, much less cook. Now, my first day back in the land of the fully dressed, I was traipsing into Price Chopper to do something about my empty fridge and hopefully dinner.

Sniff, shiver, sniff, shiver. The wind was launching into the punch line that would put an end to Indian summer’s farce. I had a chill that wouldn’t lift after a week under the covers. I wanted something warm and hearty, but also light and soothing. And, not to be too pushy, but it would also be good if it was cheap and healthy as well. (Yes, I can be a bit demanding when I’m sick.)

I was wandering somewhat aimlessly through the bread section when my mind did one of those crazy connect-the-dots things that takes only a blink to experience but an hour to explain. The short version (I think I saw this game on the Colbert Report once) went something like this. Bread. Crust. Crust. Soup. Soup. Sauce. Sauce. That recent trip to Boston and the bistro my friends took me to. TRTTBostonandTBMF took me to. The mussels in the coconut milk and lemongrass broth. Coconut milk and lemongrass broth. Dunking the bistro’s great bread. Bread. Ah full circle.

Sometimes I really freak myself out.

Where was I, oh yes, bread, and sauce and little yummy things in shells.

Well, in this store the seafood section is just an about-face from the bread section, so there I was with one turn of the heel fingering a two-pound bag of mussels and, oh heck why not they were only $5, a big back of clams. I’d never made coconut and lemongrass broth, but, really, how hard could it be. I figured since I probably had the basics for the broth in my pantry, I could bring this dish in for under $10 for my family of five. I grabbed a baguette and two stalks of lemongrass and headed home.

A quick google brought me to this recipe. I printed it out and started the pans a flying. Perhaps here is where I should mention that as a rule I don’t cook from recipes. And also, I’d been sick and my head was still a bit stuffy, and, you see, I’m sure there is a good reason for what I did next. The recipe had a long list of ingredients and they were all under the heading lemongrass broth. In the instructions it said to combine all the ingredients in a stock pot and bring them to a boil. So I did. And after getting that set, and feeling very proud of myself for actually following a recipe, I read the rest of the instructions, which said to stir fry (insert all the items in the second half of the list), and then add the broth that I had so diligently been making.

Oh frak. You mean the ginger, the garlic, the onion, the chilies. All that was for the frying pan?

Over on the stove, the broth bubbled in a cheerful, do-do-do, smirky kind of a way. Yeah, you think you can cook, eh.

But then I noticed for the first time that my chest was opening and the kitchen was filling with the potent aroma of every cold remedy I knew. Ginger, and lemon, and stock. Laces of sweet and little tip-toes of Serrano heat. I could almost feel the chill around my bones melting with each whiff.

Ok, maybe I could go with this. (Not that there was too much choice at this point. I was already late getting dinner on and the kids were starting to go wild and come up with all kinds of arguments for why I should let them eat Halloween candy for dinner.)

So I followed the rest of the recipe through as best I could.

There were a few little bumps in the road, like the clams didn’t open until long after the mussels and the coconut milk went in too soon and so it lost some of its silkiness. But perhaps the best thing about this dish is that it is very forgiving. With all my blunders it still came out delicious. And two hours after eating it, the last of my head fog cleared. Coincidence? Hah.

The one fault of the dish wast a bit too much salt.

Here is my shot at an adapted recipe, taking the best of the original and combining it with a few of my “mistakes.” I also made a few adjustments to try and compensate for the salt issue.

If you try it, I’d love to hear how it works for you. If you prefer, here is the original recipe from Mary-Anne Durkee, BellaOnline’s Thai Food Editor.

Other notes on my version. I increased the broth (it was sooooo good and the more for dipping). I also added more tomatoes since my daughters love them.