Seafood Weekend

We had a hankering for seafood over the weekend. So spaced over two meals I cooked up:

Chili Garlic Scallops

Ingredients

• 1-LB dry packed sea scallops (dry packed are not treated and never frozen)
• 4-oz Lee Kum Kee chili garlic sauce
• If you are brave, toss in 1-2 minced jalapenos or habaneros 

Heat up the chili garlic in butter for a few minutes then saute scallops for 1 & 1/2 mins each side and no longer!

Finishing touch - place a scoop or two of fish roe on top of each scallop prior to serving.

Steamed Mussels

Ingredients 

• 3lbs mussels
• 4 shallots
• 1 small onion diced
• 6 cloves of garlic
• 3 TBS olive oil
• 2 pints white wine
• fresh herbs 

Saute onions, shallots and garlic in olive oil for 3 minutes. Add the wine and bring to a boil. Add mussels and cover. Steam until mussels open (about 3 mins). Add fresh herbs. Serves 3.

Note that if the mussel does not open after cooking, don't eat it. You want them debearded already when you buy or ask to have them do it. Most good seafood shops will do that for you. Also, I typically use about a 1/2 bottle of wine.

Seafood Curry

Ingredients

• 2 lbs of seafood - such as shrimp, scallops, firm fish. Fish recommendations are sword, marlin, tuna, monk, grouper, mochong. opah, ono, or wahoo. The shrimp should be deveined.
• 8+oz of curry paste. I recommend Patakas (with the purple top)
• 2 cans coconut milk
• Optionals - Mushrooms, onions, spinach, and garlic

Preparation

Cube fish (if not already done) to approx. 3/4 to 1 inch. Marinate seafood in paste 2-24 hours. Shorter the better. I typically marinate about 4 - 6 hours. To marinate, just mix all the fish ingredients by hand in a bowl. Wear an apron as curry paste will stain. Mix until yellow throughout.

Sautee optionals in oil/butter. I recommend just a bit of olive oil. Onions first, then mushrooms, then garlic, then add an entire bag of spinach. Use a lid to squish the spinach down. Don't worry, the spinach will 'disappear' even though an entire bag will seem excessive. Add left over curry paste on top of spinach.

Pour in the cococnut milk, and reduce to desired thickness. I typically use about one to 1 & 1/4 cans for thicker curry. Add in the seafood and simmer for 5 minutes on medium high. When the shrimp tail touches the head, it is done but I'll go a bit longer myself. Pour over Basmati rice.