Clams and Mussels in Thai Curry Sauce

This recipe is compliments of Food Network Magazine, and I have to say, it's not only easy, but delicious too! We used fresh steamers and frozen mussels and served it over some Udon noodles. The broth is a bit spicy, but you can tone that down by using less hot pepper or hot sauce, to your liking. I made a few simple substitutions noted below, but otherwise followed the recipe exactly. The recipe makes quite a bit of broth, which will be used for our lunch tomorrow with a package of Ramen noodles!

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  
• 1 3-inch piece ginger, peeled and finely chopped (I used 1 tsp ginger paste instead)
  
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped (I doubled this)
  
• 1 to 2 Thai chile peppers or jalapenos, seeded and chopped (I used Sriracha hot sauce)
  
• 2 tablespoons Thai red curry paste (I used green curry paste b/c it's all I had)
  
• 1/2 cup ketchup
  
• Juice of 2 limes, plus lime wedges for serving
  
• 16 littleneck clams, scrubbed
  
• 1 3/4 pounds mussels, scrubbed
  
• 1 small red bell pepper, cut into thin strips (I used frozen bell peppers)
  
• 3/4 cup fresh cilantro
  
• 3/4 cup fresh basil
  

Directions

1. Heat the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the ginger, garlic and chiles and stir-fry until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the curry paste and ketchup and fry until slightly browned, 3 to 4 more minutes. Add the lime juice and 3 cups water, cover and bring to a boil.

2. Add the clams; cover and steam until they open slightly, about 3 minutes. Add the mussels; cover and steam until they open slightly, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in the bell pepper and half of the cilantro and basil. Cook, covered, until the pepper is crisp-tender, about 2 minutes.

3. Transfer the clams and mussels to serving bowls and ladle the broth on top. Sprinkle with the remaining cilantro and basil and garnish with lime. Serve with crusty bread, if desired.