This is my take on tiger prawn curry, which draws its inspiration from the coconut crusted prawns prepared by the Nobel economist Abhijit Banerje in this video. Since I did not have all the required ingredients in my pantry, I had to improvise a bit. My take on this South Indian dish turned out to be so tasty that I’ve cooked it several times already. The curried prawns went down very well to our Hyderabadi friends Sri and Kranthi. Sri did even a “scarpetta”, which means sopping up all the sauce left on his plate and in the frying pan with bread! Scarpetta done by an Indian food connoisseur is, of course, the best compliment to the chef, who is trying to learn to cook seafood curry!
3 tablespoons Extra virgin olive oil, or as much as needed to coat the surface of the frying pan
1.5-2 teaspoons Colman's mustard powder
1.5 teaspoons Black mustard seeds
1-2 Shallot, finely chopped
15-20 Curry leaves
5-7 cm piece of Turmeric, grated
2 cloves of Garlic, crushed
1-2 Green Chili, finely chopped
Zest of two Limes
1kg raw Tiger prawn tails, peeled and intestines removed
1 dl dry White wine
1 Lime/Lemon juice
200 ml Coconut cream
Coriander, shredded, as much as necessary
Season with Black pepper & salt
1/2 teaspoons of Saffron threads, optional
1/2 teaspoons of Spanish sweet paprika, optional
Cover the surface of the frying pan with virgin olive oil and turn on high heat (induction hob 7-8). Throw in the pan the spices/aromas, onions and turmeric; stirring constantly, so that the spices do not burn. When the shallot becomes translucent, throw in the prawns and keep stirring. When the spices and prawns start to stick to the pan, add the lime/lemon juice and the white wine. After the alcohol has evaporated, pour in the coconut cream. Continue frying / stirring until the prawns are pink and then mix in the chopped coriander. Take the pan off the stove, cover with a lid and let it sit for about 5-7 minutes. Serve as a main course with rice pilaf or as an appetizer with baguette. If you want to elevate the dish further, add into the curry some saffron.
