Thai-Coconut Bouillabaisse

Monday again. How does this keep happening? I’m sure I’m not alone in wishing it could just be the weekend forever. Maybe this will be the week I FINALLY hit that lottery jackpot! Anyway, The Hubs and I had a nice weekend of tooling around the house and just relaxing. I think the holiday/birthday bonanza has finally passed in full, and its nice to just take a weekend off and regroup. Of course, relaxing for me always means trying some new recipes!

A while ago a friend of mine asked me if I knew anything good to do with lobster. I sent her a bouillabaisse recipe and haven’t been able to get it out of my head since. This recipe is a little different, in that, it doesn’t have any lobster, but it still incorporates a ton of delicious seafood! This is a great special occasion dish. With Valentines day coming up, maybe stay in and cook dinner instead of going out!

Thai-Coconut Bouillabaisse recipe from Cooking Light

• Cooking spray
• 1  pound  jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined (reserve shells)
• 1  cup  chopped celery, divided
• 1  cup  chopped carrot, divided
• 1  cup  chopped onion, divided
• 2 1/2  cups  cold water
• 3  black peppercorns
• 1  bay leaf
• 1  teaspoon  olive oil
• 1  cup  chopped red bell pepper
• 1/2  cup  chopped tomato
• 1  tablespoon  minced fresh garlic
• 1  teaspoon  red curry paste
• 4  (2 x 1/2–inch) lime rind strips
• 1  (13.5-ounce) can light coconut milk
• 12  littleneck clams, scrubbed
• 12  mussels, scrubbed and debearded
• 1/4  cup  chopped fresh basil
• 1/4  cup  chopped fresh cilantro
• 1  teaspoon  salt
• 1/4  teaspoon  black pepper
• 1  (6-ounce) skinned halibut fillet or other lean white fish fillet, cut into 1-inch pieces
• Lime wedges (optional)

1. Heat a medium saucepan over medium heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add shrimp shells to pan; cook 3 minutes, stirring frequently. Add 1/2 cup celery, 1/2 cup carrot, and 1/2 cup onion to pan; cook 1 minute, stirring occasionally. Stir in 2 1/2 cups water, peppercorns, and bay leaf; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Strain mixture through a sieve over a bowl; discard solids.

2. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add remaining 1/2 cup celery, 1/2 cup carrot, and 1/2 cup onion to pan; cook 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add bell pepper; cook 1 minute, stirring occasionally. Stir in tomato, garlic, curry paste, and rind; cook 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Stir in broth mixture and coconut milk; bring to a boil. Add clams and mussels. Cover, reduce heat, and cook 2 minutes or until clams and mussels open. Remove from heat; discard any unopened shells. Stir in shrimp, basil, and remaining ingredients except lime wedges. Cover and let stand 5 minutes or until shrimp and halibut are done. Discard lime rind. Place 2 clams and 2 mussels in each of 6 bowls. Divide shrimp and fish evenly among bowls. Ladle 2/3 cup broth mixture over each serving. Serve with lime wedges, if desired.

A little note on unusual ingredients (such as red curry paste) These types of ingredients are often more readily available than you might think. Take a few minutes to really look around the asian or ethnic food isles in your regular supermarket. You’d be surprised at how large of a selection they carry. Also, if you can’t easily get an ingredient don’t give up! Just google a substitute for whatever you’re looking for!

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