Red Curry Mussels and Roasted Sweet Potatoes
- Total Time
- 1 hour
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
Advertisement
Ingredients
Yield:4 to 6 servings
- 6medium sweet potatoes (about 3 pounds)
- 3tablespoons melted coconut oil or vegetable oil
- Salt and pepper
- 1teaspoon cumin seeds, toasted and ground
- ½teaspoon ground cayenne, or less to taste
- 2tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1medium red onion, diced
- 4bird’s-eye chiles, split to the stem, seeds left in
- 6garlic cloves, minced
- 1(2-inch) piece fresh ginger, finely chopped (3 tablespoons)
- 2tablespoons finely chopped lemongrass
- 3tablespoons Thai red curry paste
- 1tablespoon tomato paste
- 1teaspoon fish sauce
- 3 or 4makrut lime leaves
- 3cups thick coconut milk (about 1½ cans, well shaken before opening)
- 3pounds mussels, cleaned
- 1cup roughly chopped cilantro leaves and tender stems, for garnish
- 1Fresno chile, sliced, for garnish
- 1cup Thai basil leaves, or another kind of basil, for garnish
- Lime wedges, for serving
For the Sweet Potatoes
For the Curry
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)
712 calories; 42 grams fat; 28 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 6 grams monounsaturated fat; 3 grams polyunsaturated fat; 55 grams carbohydrates; 7 grams dietary fiber; 10 grams sugars; 34 grams protein; 1535 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Powered byPreparation
- Step 1
Prepare the sweet potatoes: Heat oven to 450 degrees. Peel the sweet potatoes, and cut them lengthwise into slender wedges. Put them in a large bowl, and toss them with coconut oil to coat. Season generously with salt and pepper. Transfer to a rimmed baking sheet and spread out in a single layer. Bake, uncovered for 15 minutes, then reduce heat to 400 degrees. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes until tender with a crisp exterior. Before serving, sprinkle with cumin and cayenne.
- Step 2
While sweet potatoes are baking, make the curry: Put vegetable oil in a Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot with a lid over medium-high heat. Add onions and cook until lightly browned and softened, about 8 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Step 3
Add chiles, garlic, ginger and lemongrass and let sizzle for about 1 minute. Then add red curry paste and tomato paste and fry with the onion mixture for 2 minutes more.
- Step 4
Add fish sauce, lime leaves and coconut milk. Bring mixture to a boil, then add mussels and stir to coat with sauce. Cover and cook mussels, stirring once or twice, until all the mussels have steamed open, 8 to 10 minutes.
- Step 5
Ladle mussels and lots of sauce into deep, wide bowls. Sprinkle with cilantro and Fresno chile slices and top with basil leaves. Serve with a platter of hot sweet potatoes and lime wedges.
Private Notes
Leave a Private Note on this recipe and see it here.
Cooking Notes
dimmerswitch
Makrut lime leaves are also called kaffir lime leaves and looking for them labeled as the latter may make it easier to find them. Even in some mainstream grocers - typically in the fresh herb produce section. Easier to buy if you have a SE Asian or Indian market nearby. Kaffir lime leaves add a distinct quality to a dish and I use a number of recipes that call for them. The good news is if you do find them, they freeze well to use as you need them.
Nancy
There really isn’t any need to peel the potatoes. The skin has lots of nutrients and doesn’t change the overall texture.
DRC PGH
I made this last night-- to be fair the recipe is not dissimilar from one I've made several times before, and it makes for a great dinner, with fast prep and cooking times. But the sweet potato fries-- really good, a solid addition. I can see them popping up with other dishes from now on.
VJBortolot
When I need a combo of red curry paste, kaffir lime leaves and lemon grass (the latter two I normally don't have handy), I usually substitute tom yum paste from a jar for the three in mussels as this recipe, or use with peanut butter and basil and ramen plus some tofu for any easy lunch. I think there's even fish sauce in it too. I use it quite often. The sweet potato fries look to be an excellent accompaniment.
Cat
Sweet potatoes are unnecessary, but curry sauce is good.
Ag Zuki
AMAZING. YUM. Minor modification: subbed out lemongrass for lime zest, becuase I didn't have it.
cathy
Cut the curry paste Do not use the hot pepper
liz
Amazing! Mine ended up a little bitter somehow but I did use a new kind of coconut milk. Will definitely make again!
Andrea
Made the mussels from this recipe the other evening for a friend and didn’t have lime leaves or lemongrass on hand. It still turned out beautifully aromatic and full of flavor. I’ll make again for sure and try it with all ingredients but don’t let certain shortfalls stop you if you have the basics around the kitchen.
Andy
Lime zest is a perfectly fine substitute for kaffir lime leaves, if you can't find any.
CK
Lime zest works well in place of the makrut leaves.
wes
The family raved! Easy and excellent, even without the lime leaves which I did not have.
momo
Red onion is imperative but a bit less than recipe. Didn’t have enough coconut for potatoes but cumin was just fine. One of the best things I’ve ever made!
Diana
I received a tiny Makrut tree when I was living in California as a present. I moved to Oregon 3 years later, where it snows most winters. I thought my little tree would die, but it is now HUGE. It never produced limes in California, but in Oregon it gives me 30-40/year, to the delight of my Malaysian neighbors - they get both limes and leaves. The point is that it is easy to grow a Makrut - I feed it periodically, and cover it in the winter.
Liz
This was very good. Made it as directed except shortened the time for roasting the sweet potatoes to 20 minutes at 425. Left the skins on, and cooked them on parchment paper so they held their shape and were reasonably crispy. Only modification to the curry was to serve it over rice. We thought the rice helped bring out the flavor of the curry.
Betsy
This RULES! My Asian grocery was sold out of makrut lime leaves so I just put in the juice of half a lime. I added cauliflower to the pan with the sweet potatoes for the last 20 minutes. Just the greatest
Jane
The red curry mussels recipe is a winner but the sweet potatoes were mushy with this degree of heat + time. I tried them again, slightly bigger, slightly lower heat and for 25 mins: still way over-cooked with nothing like a crispy exterior. Then I read this in a Samin Nosrat article in this newspaper: "Carla Lalli Music says, “I don’t understand why people are constantly roasting them, roasting just makes them more fibrous and leathery, and they never, ever really get crisp".
Tricia
I have never found sweet potatoes to be fibrous -- maybe using yams? The problem with this recipe is that they are cooked way too long. I make SP fries frequently to accompany lots of meals. Prep as described (I often sprinkle with chipotle pepper powder as great with burgers). 450F under the broiler, toss once. Should not take more than 15 minutes to become caramelized like the photo.
Andrea
I used the idea of red curry sauce with 1 lb defrosted shrimp and 1 can coconut milk. Delicious. Sweet and spicy!
VJBortolot
When I need a combo of red curry paste, kaffir lime leaves and lemon grass (the latter two I normally don't have handy), I usually substitute tom yum paste from a jar for the three in mussels as this recipe, or use with peanut butter and basil and ramen plus some tofu for any easy lunch. I think there's even fish sauce in it too. I use it quite often. The sweet potato fries look to be an excellent accompaniment.
Private notes are only visible to you.
Advertisement
