Recipe Description
This prawn curry originated from Kerala, India. This unique curry was influenced by the British back in the early days. Back then, people couldn’t take food that were too spicy, so they invented this stew-based curry that was not too spicy. Nonetheless, this curry still uses traditional spices typically used in Indian curries, such as curry leaves, fenugreek and ground pepper.
This curry is one of the easiest to make. You can have it with rice and even baguette slices.
Chef Sapna Anand recently published a cookbook, New Indian Kitchen, which is available at MPH bookstores. She also conducts cooking classes at At 19 Culinary Studio where she shares her cooking experiences and techniques. She blogs at My Test Kitchen and has a FB page under the same name. Picture courtesy of Sapna Anand.
Recipe Ingredient
- 2 tbsp vegetable or coconut oil
- 250 g fresh prawns
- 4 small shallots
- 2large clove garlic (peeled)
- ½inch fresh ginger
- 2stalks curry leaves
- 1tsp coriander powder
- 1/4 fenugreek seed powder
- 1 tbsp cashew nutfrom 10 fresh cashews
- 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 250 ml coconut milk
- Salt for seasoning
Instructions
- Clean and de-vein the prawns, discard the shells and heads but keep tails on
- To make the cashew nut paste: Soak 10 cashews in warm water for about 10 minutes, and blend with a bit of water to make a smooth, thick paste
- Slice shallots, ginger, and garlic.
- In a skillet, heat the oil, then add garlic, ginger and curry leaves and sauté for a few seconds.
- Add shallots and continue to sauté for another 5 minutes.
- Then lower the heat, add coriander powder and fenugreek powder, and stir for a few seconds.
- Toss the prawns into the skillet and cook over low heat until they turn pink.
- Season with salt and pepper
- Add a tablespoon of cashew nut paste and stir for about 5 minutes
- Then, pour the coconut milk and bring to a light boil.
- Taste and season according to your preference.
- Recipe Notes: If you want to add colour to your curry, you can add in a few teaspoons of turmeric to give it that bright orange colour.
