Spiced, Aromatic Prawn/Shrimp Roast

Spiced, Aromatic Prawn/Shrimp Roast

Ingredients

Serves 4

500g prawns or shrimps, peeled and deveined

3 teaspoon kashmiri chili powder

1 teaspoon turmeric powder

1 green chili, slit

1 inch fresh ginger piece

5 sprig curry leaves, divided

Salt, to taste

2 cups water, plus extra for grinding

2 tablespoon oil, or more (use coconut oil for authentic taste)

Directions

Grind ginger, green chili, 2 sprig curry leaves, turmeric powder and chili powder to a smooth paste, adding a small amount of water. 

In a heavy-based pan, combine the masala paste with the water and place over medium-low heat. Tip in the prawns and season. Simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until prawns are tender. Then increase the heat and boil the liquid until thick and reduced, stirring often. When most of the liquid has been absorbed and the prawns are coated with the marinade, drizzle generously with oil. Taste and season, if needed. Add remaining curry leaves — or as much as you like — and cook over very low heat for a few more minutes. Ah, at this stage, don't forget to enjoy the smell of the roasting prawns wafting through the kitchen, whetting your appetite! And, take care not to scorch the marinade. Remove from heat when the prawns start to crisp and turn golden brown. Serve warm with steamed rice.

Fried Sardine — Mathi Varuthathu

Fried Sardine — Mathi Varuthathu

Ingredients

5 sardines, scaled and gutted

2 teaspoon kashmiri chili powder

½ teaspoon turmeric powder

2 teaspoon peppercorns

2 teaspoon vinegar

1 teaspoon oil, plus extra for shallow frying

1 teaspoon ginger-garlic paste

2 sprig curry leaves

salt, to taste

Directions

Working with one sardine at a time, cut off heads and tails, and rinse them in fresh lemon juice and water. Make horizontal gashes on both sides; set aside.

Crush peppercorns to a fine powder in a coffee grinder or blender. Then add chili powder, turmeric, ginger-garlic paste, vinegar, 1 teaspoon oil and a bit of water. Blend to make a thick paste. Season.

Marinate fish in this mixture, massaging some of the marinade into the cavity of each fish. Let sit, at room temperature, for 30 minutes to allow the flavors to set in.

In a large non-stick frying pan, heat oil over medium-low heat. Add the whole sprig of curry leaves and then place the fish. Shallow fry for about 2 minutes each side or until cooked and browned. Adjust the cooking time to how you prefer them. If, like me, you like the idea of enjoying crispy sardines, fry a bit more. Take care not to overcook as the fish dries out quickly losing its delicate flavor. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels.

Red Fish Curry

Red Fish Curry — Meen Vevichathu

Ingredients

Serves 4

450g fish, cleaned, sliced or cut into chunks (I used seer or kingfish known as aiyakoora or neymeen in Malayalam)

2 tablespoons oil, divided (preferably coconut oil)

¼ teaspoon fenugreek seeds

¼ cup sliced shallots

2 sprigs curry leaves, plus few extra leaves for tempering

1 medium tomato

2 small green chilies

1 teaspoon ginger-garlic paste

½ teaspoon fenugreek powder

3 ½—4 teaspoon Kashmiri chili powder 

¼ teaspoon turmeric powder

4 pieces kodampuli, rinsed

1 cup water

salt, to taste

½ teaspoon black mustard seeds

Directions

In a manchatti or clay pot, heat 1 ½ tablespoon oil over medium-low heat until shimmering. Add fenugreek and cook until the seeds crackle, about 15 seconds. Add shallots and curry leaves, and gently fry until shallots are tender, about 4 minutes.

Meanwhile, blend tomatoes, green chilies, ginger-garlic paste, fenugreek powder, chili powder and turmeric to a smooth paste in a grinder or food processor.

When the shallots are tender, add the paste, kodampuli, enough salt to taste, water, and bring everything to boil, uncovered, stirring occasionally. Gently tip in fish, stirring to coat the pieces in the sauce. Simmer for about 10 minutes or until the fish flakes easily, and the gravy is thickened and reduced to your taste. Gently swirl or shake the pot to mix the flavors, taking care not to break the fish pieces. Adjust seasoning as needed; remove from heat.

Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, heat the remaining oil (½ tablespoon) until shimmering. Tip in mustard seeds and cook until they crackle, about 10 seconds. Add the remaining curry leaves, and remove from heat. This cooking technique is called tarkha or tempering. Now quickly fold the toasted ingredients into the hot curry.

Serve hot with steamed rice and yoghurt on the side.

Prawns Biriyani – Chemmeen Biriyani Recipe

Prawns Biriyani – Chemmeen Biriyani Recipe

Biryani means a dish where rice and a curry of meat or fish cooked separately, then brought together and layered. This gives the dish a contrast of flavored rice and intensely flavored meat or vegetables.

Ingredients

• Basmati rice - 2 cup
• Water - 4 cups
• Cardamom - 3 nos
• Cinnamon - 2 pieces
• Cloves - 3 nos
• Bay Leaf - 2
• Onion - 1 (sliced)
• Lemon Juice - 2 tsp
• Salt to taste
• Big prawns - 4 nos (deveined and washed)
• Red chilly powder - 2 tsp
• Turmeric powder - 2 tsp
• Coriander powder - 2 tsp
• Ginger garlic Paste - 2 tsp
• Lemon Juice - 1 tsp
• Salt to taste
• Ghee - 5 tsp
• Onion - 2 nos (Sliced)
• Green chillies - 5 nos
• Mint leaves - 1/4 cup
• Coriander Leaves - 1/4 cup
• Coconut oil - 1/2 cup
• Curd - 1 cup
• Tomato - 1 no (chopped)
• Cashew nuts - 10 (fried)
• Raisins - 10 (fried)

Method

Step 1

Wash and soak the rice for 10 minutes. Drain and keep aside. Boil 4 cups of water.

Step 2

Heat a pan and add ghee, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, bay leaf, sliced onion and saute for 4 minutes. Add the drained rice and saute well. Add boiled water and salt to the rice and cook for 10 minutes. Sprinkle lime juice to it and stir well. The rice is ready.

Step 3

Clean the big prawns and marinate with 1 tsp red chilly powder, 1 tsp turmeric powder, 1 tsp coriander powder, 1 tsp ginger garlic paste and salt. keep it for half an hour.

Step 4

Heat oil in a pan shallow fry the big prawns for 5 minutes.

Step 5

In the same oil sort the sliced onion for 3 minutes. Add ginger garlic paste, green chillies add stir well.

Step 6

Add red chilly powder, turmeric powder, coriander powder, tomato, mint leaves, coriander leaves, curd and mix well. Add fried big prawns, salt and cook in low flame for 5 minutes. Prawns gravy is ready now.

Step 7

Take another big vessel for stacking layers for biryani. Spread some prawns gravy first. Now spread some rice enough to cover the prawns gravy.

Step 8

Again spread prawns gravy, then rice, again ghee, mint leaves, fried cashews and raisins. Repeat the same process, until gravy is over and finish it up with rice on top.

Step 9

Cover tightly with a heavy weight and cook about 25 mins on slow heat. Prawn biryani is ready.

Step 10

Serve hot prawns biryani with salad.

Fish Biriyani Recipe –Malabar Style Fish Biriyani Recipe

Fish Biriyani Recipe – Malabar Style Fish Biriyani Recipe

Ingredients

• To fry fish :
• Cleaned king Fish - 1/2 kg
• Lime juice - 2 tbsp
• Red Chilli powder - 2 tbsp
• Turmeric powder - 1 tbsp
• Pepper powder - 1/2 tbsp
• Salt to taste
• Oil to fry fish
• To make Biriyani Masala :
• Ghee - 4 tbsp
• Ginger paste - 2 tbsp
• Garlic paste - 2 tbsp
• Onions chopped - 3 big
• Tomato chopped - 1 big
• Green Chili - 8
• Coriander leaves - 10
• Mint leaves - 10
• Lime juice - 7 tbsp
• Turmeric powder - 1/2 tbsp
• Chili powder - 1/2 tbsp
• Coriander powder - 1/2 tbsp
• Garam masala - 1/4 tbsp
• Salt to taste
• To make ghee rice :
• Rice - 1/4 kg (2 and 1/2 glass rice)
• Water - 5 glass
• Ghee - 5 tbsp
• Sunflower oil - 5 tbsp
• Cinnamon(Karugapatta) - 5 piece
• Cardamom(Elakka) seeds - 5 piece
• Cloves(Grambu) - 5 piece
• For seasoning :
• 1 big onion chopped
• 12 cashew nuts
• 12 dried grapes

Method

Step 1

First step is to marinate the fish for 1/2 an hour by coating the fish with 2 tbsp red chilli powder, 2 tbsp lime juice, 1/2 tbsp pepper powder, 1 tbsp turmeric powder and salt to taste.

Step 2

Heat oil in a pan and fry the fish. Donot deep fry, but have to be fried moderately.

Step 3

By the time your fish is getting fried you can make the rice. Rice has to be washed in advance and kept drained to get dried for atleast 1/2 an hour.

Step 4

Heat oil and ghee mix in a thick bottomed bowl. Add Cinnamon(Karugapatta), Cardamom(Elakka) seeds, Cloves(Grambu) and fry for 1/2 a minute. Then add dried rice and fry it until rice gets separated from each other. Please take care that the rice should not get brown color when you fry it.

Step 5

Mean while, boil water by adding adequate salt required to cook the rice.

Step 6

Once the rice is fried, add boiling water to the rice and check salt. Then stir well and cook the rice in low flame with lid closed. Once rice is cooked switch of the flame and keep aside.

Step 7

Now the third step is to make the masala. Before we start masala preparation, we can fry the seasoning items (onion, cashew nuts and dried grapes) and keep aside.

Step 8

In the same oil in which we have fried the seasoning items sauté ginger and garlic paste first. Put onion to this and sauté onion, tomato, green chilli, coriander leaves and mint leaves.

Step 9

Once this is sautéed well add lime juice, turmeric powder, chilli powder, coriander powder, garam masala and salt to taste.

Step 10

Sauté for 5 more minutes and slide fried fish to this gravy. Add 2 to 3 spoons of water and slowly mix the gravy and fish.

Step 11

Allow to cook for 10 minutes in very low flame with lid closed. Your Biriyani masala is ready!!!

Step 12

In a thick bottomed vessel greased with ghee, layer the ghee rice and fish masala adding some fresh coriander leaves in between the layers. On top add the fried seasoning and a spoon of ghee. Keep aside for 1/2 an hour and serve hot with dates chutney.

King Fish Fry Recipe – Kerala Style Fish Fry

King Fish Fry Recipe – Kerala Style Fish Fry

A tip to remove the fishy smell of the Fish:  Coat cleaned fish with juice of one lemon and salt. Keep aside for 5 minutes and again clean the fish in running water. All the fishy smell will go!!! 

Ingredients

• Cleaned King Fish - 1/2 kg
• Chilli powder - 2 tbsp
• Turmeric powder - 1 tbsp
• Lemon juice - 2 tbsp
• Shallots cleaned - 5
• Salt to taste
• Oil to fry fish
• Curry leaves - a few to add when frying

Method

Step 1

Make fine paste of all the ingredients and apply on the Fish. Marinate for 1/2 an hour.

Step 2

Heat oil in a pan and deep fry the Fish. Add some curry leaves once fish is half fried to add very nice flavor.

Step 3

Your spicy, tasty and easy Fish fry is ready to serve hot with Rice and variety of breads!!!!

Chilli Prawns / Shrimp

1. Cleaned prawns/shrimp – 500 gms
2. Plain flour (maida) – 3 tablespoon
   Cornflour – 3 tablespoon
   Crushed Pepper – 1 tablespoon
   Egg white – of 1 egg
   Salt
3. Onion – 1 medium
   Ginger & garlic – 1 tablespoon each, chopped
4. Capsicum – 1 small
5. Spring onion – 1/2 cup chopped
6. Chilli powder – 1 teaspoon
   Crushed pepper – 1/2 tablespoon
7. Soya sauce – 1 tablespoon
   Tomato sauce – 1-2 tablespoon
8. Salt
   Oil

Mix number 2 ingredients with a little water and make a thick paste. Marinate the prawns in this paste for 20 minutes. Fry the prawns and keep it aside. In the same oil saute ginger,garlic & chopped onion. When the onion becomes soft add capsicum & spring onion. Saute for 5 minutes & add chilli powder & crushed pepper. Mix well. Add the sauces & salt. Stir for a few minutes and add the fried prawns. Mix well.Cook for some more minutes till it becomes dry. Garnish with spring onion.

Prawn Curry in Coconut Milk – Chemmeen Thenga Pal Curry

Prawn Curry in Coconut Milk – Chemmeen Thenga Pal Curry 

Ingredients

• Prawns - 500 gm
• Red chilly powder - 2 tsp
• Green chillies - 3 nos (chopped)
• Gambooge (Kudampuli) - 3 pieces
• Coconut milk - 2 cups
• Ginger - 1/2 inch piece (chopped)
• Curry leaves - 2 strings
• Shallots - 5 nos (chopped)
• Turmeric powder - 1 tsp
• Salt to taste
• Coriander powder - 1/2 tsp
• Coconut oil - 3 tsp
• Garlic - 3 cloves (chopped)

Method

Step 1

De-shell and de-vein ( very important ) the prawn and wash softly.

Step 2

In a clay pot, combine cleaned prawns, coconut milk, turmeric powder, red chilly powder, coriander powder, chopped ginger, chopped garlic, chopped green chillies, gambooge (kudampuli) and salt. Heat on medium flame and cook for 10 minutes until the prawns are soft and cooked completely.

Step 3

In a pan heat coconut oil and add chopped shallots and curry leaves. Saute well till it becomes golden in color. Add this to hot prawn curry and combine well.

Step 4

Switch off the flame and cover the pan. Keep the prawn curry for at least 30 minutes before serving, so that the prawns absorb all the flavors.

Step 5

Tasty Prawn Curry is ready to be served with rice, appam or chapathi.