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| Thai-Style Steamed Mussels |
When first approached, I jumped at the chance to create a beer pairing recipe for the
New Belgium Brewing Company, makers of the popular Fat Tire beer.
I absolutely
love pairing wine with food, so why not extend my skills and work with beer? My first stop was Whole Foods, where I picked up a case of
Trippel Belgium Style Ale, New Belgium's boldest and strongest beer with the longest fermentation (and highest alcohol at around 8%). The beer opens with a blast of hops that smoothly gives way to complex character, finishing with a spicy punch of coriander. This was a big beer with a big personality, and not for the weak of heart. While the obvious choice would have been to go for meat, either braising or roasting it, I wanted to do something a little bit different.
Inspired by the spicy character and coriander flavors, I immediately thought of curry (coriander is one of the major components in a lot of curry), and this led me down the road to Thailand. With such a bold beer, I figured that it would hold up well to the strong flavors and spiciness of Thai aromatics. And instead of meat, I decided that I would steam mussels in the beer itself, finishing them with coconut milk and julienned basil.
