Ingredients
Core Ingredients
- 300 grams large prawns
- 2 cups basmati rice
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1 tablespoon ghee
- 1 onion (large, chopped into small pieces)
- 1 tomato (large, chopped into small pieces)
- ½ cup frozen peas
- 100 grams snap peas (optional)
- 1 cup coconut milk
- 1 ½ cup hot water
- 2 green chilles
- lemon juice
Herbs and Spices
- 1 bunch curry leaves
- 3 tablespoons chopped coriander leaves
- 3 tablespoons chopped mint leaves
- 10 peppercorns
- 6 cloves
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 star anise
- ½ tablespoon ginger paste
- ½ tablespoon garlic paste
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon chilli powder
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder
- ½ salt
Instructions
- Soak the rice in warm water for 30 minutes. Rinse until the water runs clear, drain, and set aside.
- Marinate the prawns with the salt, half of the turmeric powder, and a dash of lemon juice for 20 minutes.
- Heat up the ghee and oil together in your pan. When hot, add the peppercorns, cloves, cinnamon stick, star anise, and bay leaves and sauté for 1 minute.
- Throw the onions into the pan and sauté until they are clear. Add in the garlic and ginger paste and cook for 2 minutes.
- Add all the remaining spices and sauté for approximately 30 seconds, taking care not to let them burn. Add the chopped tomato until soft.
- Now, it’s time to add the prawns along with the curry leaves. Sauté them for around a minute. Add in the rice with the chopped mint and coriander leaves, setting aside 1 tablespoon of each for the garnish. Stir gently.
- Add the water and coconut milk next. Once boiling, add the peas, snap peas and green chillies and simmer gently till the rice is cooked. Take care not to overcook the rice.
- Mix gently and garnish with the remainder of the coriander and mint leaves.
Notes
Top tips
- Serve with fresh homemade raita. Add 1 cup of peeled and finely diced cucumber, ¼ cup of chopped coriander leaves, ½ teaspoon of garam masala, ½ teaspoon of salt, and ½ teaspoon of cumin to 1½ cups of plain yoghurt and mix well.
- A crisp green salad is also a great accompaniment to this dish.
- If you’re using frozen prawns, be sure to defrost them thoroughly by placing them in a colander under cold running water, moving them around so they defrost evenly. Don’t be tempted to use warm water as the prawns may begin to cook and will defrost unevenly.
- To know when raw prawns are cooked, you’ll see them turn opaque and pink, and a small gap between the shell and body of the prawn will appear.
- The turmeric will give the dish its yellow colour so you won’t need food colouring.
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