Mussels with a Parsley Crust

I made this tasteful dish for dinner today. Easy and didn't take that long to prepare. Based on a Spanish seafood recipe I recently discovered in one of the cookbooks I've got for Christmas, I was quite surprised at the end result for it tasted quite like it was prepared with some shrimp paste. For me, that was delicious!

The following recipe serves four:
INGREDIENTS
450g fresh mussels
45ml water
1 tbsp melted butter
1 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper (to taste)

1. Scrub the mussels thoroughly, scraping off any barnacles with a round-bladed knife and pulling out the gritty beards. Sharply tap any open mussels and discard any that fail to close or whose shells are broken.
2. Place the mussels in a large pan and add the water. Cover the pan with a lid and steam for about 5 minutes, or until the mussels shells have opened.
3. Drain the mussels well and discard any that remain closed. Carefully snap off the top shell from each mussel, leaving the actual flesh still attached to the bottom shell.
4. Balance the shells in a flameproof dish, packing them closely together to make sure that they stay level.
5. Preheat the grill (broiler) to high.
6. Put the melted butter, olive oil, grated Parmesan cheese, parsley, garlic and black pepper in a small bowl and mix well to combine.
7. Spoon a small amount of the mixture on top of each mussel and gently press down with the back of the spoon.
8. Grill the mussels for about 2 minutes, or until they are sizzling and golden. Serve the mussels in their shells, with plenty of bread to mop up the delicious juice.

I enjoyed this dish with fried rice in butter, garlic and onion. Not what was recommended, but it was nice. I hope you will enjoy it too :-)

Prawn Sambal with Petai

Last Saturday, I was invited to dinner at a nice cosy little warm home of my Singaporean friend and her husband, Ben. My friend, Lydia said she would prepare all the meal, and I was to bring nothing. They have been to my place a few times for dinner and this time, it's my time to be entertained :-) I'm not used to not bringing anything and since I'm also not very good at buying present for married couple, I told Lydia, I'll also cook a simple dish to bring. Something we both would be able to enjoy most when we're being so far away from home. So I made the prawn sambal with petai. I don't know what is the name for petai in English, so I'll stick to petai. Anyway, I think petai should stay as petai. I'd like to share the recipe of the sambal here, which I've improvised. Likewise, you are free to make your own improvisation, because I think you should cook according to your own taste (though in my case, according to what's available here). The again, isn't it amazing to be able to find petai here in Hamburg?

So, here goes ...

100 g petai

20 prawns (shelled and deveined)

2 red onions

1 clove garlic

1 tbsp sambal oelek (or to taste)

2 tsp tamarind paste

1 tbsp shrimp paste

Salt, pepper and white sugar to taste

2 tbsp cooking oil

Using pestle and mortar, pound coarsely one of the onion, garlic and shrimp paste. If you don't have this, use a small blender and if you use the blender, you can blend the sambal oelek together too.

Slice thinly the other onion. Heat oil on medium heat then fry the sliced onion until soft. The add the pounded ingredients, and sambal oelek. Fry till fragrant and remember to keep stirring. Then add the prawns. Fry again about 5 minutes. Add the petai. Stir to combine and add in the tamarind paste. Add sugar, salt and pepper to taste. Fry for another 10 minutes but make sure the petai is not too soft. It's nicer when they're crunchy.

Once ready, serve with rice.

Please take note that when I cook, I don't always stick to the recipe. The amount, measurement and times are estimation. The ingredient itself, like I said, was based on what I could get from the shop here. Try it out yourself. Let me know how's yours turnout :-)

Also note that this dish is an acquired taste. The petai beans are well-known for their strong smell and bitter taste.