Kerang Hijau Saus Padang - Mussels in Hot and Spicy Sauce

Fish and shellfish are always be my favourite. I grew up in a city near the sea, back to my childhood, we always had fish or shellfish for our daily food. It made me a bit difficult to survive when I had to move to another city which is not closed to the sea and also fish and shellfish are more expensive there than in our hometown.

Kerang Hijau Saus Padang, it's translated as Mussles in Padang Style Sauce or Mussels in Hot and Spicy Sauce. Padang is the capital city of West Sumatra province in Indonesia and very popular with its hot and spicy food, that is why that hot and spicy sauce is a name after Padang.

Category:		Fish and Shellfish
Style:		Indonesian

Ingredients:
500 grams mussels in shell, scrubbed clean and beards removed water for boiling the mussels
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 cm gingerroot, minced
1 can diced pineapple, blended 1 tbsp fresh lime/lemon juice/vinegar
4 tbsp ketchup
3 tbsp hot sauce (or put as much as desired), you can use sriracha, ABC/Indofood chili sauce or sambal oelek as well)
sugar and salt as desired

Spices (grind)
5 bird chili (you can put as less/much as desired)
6 shallots
3 cloves garlic

Directions:

• Bring the mussels to a boil and boil them until the shells open, and drain. Remove and discard the top shell of each mussel.
• In a large skillet or saucepan, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the ginger and ground spice and saute over moderate heat, stirring often until fragrant. Add ketchup, hot sauce, and sugar (if you need it).
• Add the water, mussels and salt as desired, cook until all is done and doesn�t have fishy smell. Add pineapple and lemon juice/vinegar, stir. Bring to a boil and let the sauce thicken.