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Lobster and mussel moqueca

by Marcello Tully
  1. Moqueca de lagosta e mexilhao
Item 1 of 1
  • Main
  • medium
  • 4
  • 1 hour 15 minutes
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Moqueca is a Brazilian fish stew made with coconut milk, coriander and lime. It is often made with prawn, shrimp or crab but Brazilian-born chef Marcello Tully opts for luxurious lobster and juicy mussels and pairs the dish with a colourful tomato concasse. If you have never tackled life shellfish before take a look at our guide on how to cook lobster for advice on killing them humanely, and remember to place them into the freezer first – this causes the lobsters to become stunned.

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Ingredients

Metric

Imperial

To serve

SAVE RECIPE

Method

1
To kill the lobsters, insert the tip of a sharp knife into the cross on the top of their heads in a quick, firm movement. Bring a large pan of water to the boil, add the lobsters to the pan and increase the heat to return the water to boiling point. Simmer for 10 minutes, then drain and leave to cool a little
2
Once the lobsters have cooled enough to handle cut them in half lengthways with a large, sharp knife. Remove the meat from the lobsters and set aside, keeping warm until ready to serve
3
Place a large frying pan over a medium heat and add the oil and onions to the pan. Fry gently for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally to ensure they do not catch, then add the garlic, ginger and chilli to the pan and fry for a further 2-3 minutes. Stir through the coconut milk, cream and sugar and bring the mixture up to the boil
4
Once boiling, whisk through the cornflour until thoroughly combined. Reduce to a simmer and cook for a further 5 minutes, then stir in the lime juice and fresh coriander. Season to taste and remove from the heat, keeping warm until until ready to serve
5
De-beard the mussels and wash thoroughly, then place in a pan with a little water and cook on a high heat for 1-2 minutes until the mussels open. Drain the mussels and set aside ready to serve
6
Make a slight incision across the top of each tomato and plunge them into a bowl or pan of boiling water. Carefully remove and refresh the tomatoes in a bowl of chilled water, then peel off the skin and discard
7
Cut the tomatoes into quarters and scoop out the seeds and pulp, leaving just the outer shell of the tomato. Flatten these shells down on a chopping board and dice into small cubes
8
To serve, ladle a generous helping of the sauce onto a deep plate and arrange the lobster meat and mussels on top. Sprinkle over the tomato concasse and garnish with mixed salad leaves
  • salad leaves
First published in 2015
Marcello Tully

When Brazilian-born chef Marcello Tully started his career at fourteen, he may not have anticipated working on the starkly beautiful island of Skye – but then he probably didn’t expect to be crafting some of the most exquisitely refined Scottish-influenced food on the planet, either.

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