Shrimp Curry: Your Next Dinner Winner!
Ever thought about making dinner and feeling like you’ve traveled somewhere exotic without leaving your home? That’s precisely what cooking Shrimp Curry does. It’s like a flavor-packed vacation in a bowl.
Creamy Shrimp Curry in Spicy Coconut Milk
Based on the Goan recipe, this shrimp curry uses coconut milk and aromatic spices that create an appetizing flavor and taste.
This curry has a bit of everything – a creamy sauce, succulent texture, a spicy kick, and the kind of flavor that makes you go “wow” with every bite. Plus, it’s pretty colorful on a plate!
I promise this shrimp curry will be one of the easiest curries you’ll ever make. But it will cause you to want to eat it more and more. It’s that delicious.
Reason You’ll Love the Curry
- Quick & Easy: Seriously, it’s ready before you know it, as you only need to spend 10 minutes preparing the sauce and another few minutes cooking the shrimp. The dish will be ready in 15 minutes.
- Flavorful: Each spoonful is a burst of joy. Especially if you love anything with spices and coconut milk, this dish has every flavor you’d want from a meal.
- Nutritious: Packed with good-for-you ingredients, as we know that shrimp is a good source of protein, coconut milk offers some health benefits, as well as spices.
- Versatile: Eat it with rice, bread, or even noodles. They’re all excellent carbs for this curry.
Ingredients You Need
- Shrimp: The star of the show. You can use pretty much any shrimp, i.e., pink, white, brown, tiger, etc. I often use tiger prawns as they are more available in supermarkets.
- Spices: No Indian curry without spices, and for this recipe, you’ll need coriander seeds, cumin seeds, black peppercorns, cayenne pepper, paprika, ground turmeric, ginger, and chopped onion.
- Coconut Milk: Add creamy texture and taste to the dish. You can make the coconut milk from scratch or use the canned coconut milk. Another choice is using coconut milk powder, which is practical.
- Tamarind or Lemon: Gives a little fresh tang to the curry. Tamarind paste or sauce are good options. However, a squeeze of half a lemon can do the trick, if not better.
- Salt: A must-have item to give flavor.
- Cooking Oil: Use any neutral oil such as corn, peanut, sunflower, or rapeseed oil.
How to Make Shrimp Curry Indian Style
If you use shell-on shrimps, prep them by peeling and deveining the heads. You can also use frozen raw shrimp, but ensure you thaw them thoroughly before using.
Prepare the spices by grinding coriander, cumin, black peppercorns, Kashmiri red chili powder, paprika, and turmeric in a spice grinder. Do so as finely as possible.
Then, chop the ginger and garlic with two tablespoons of water in a spice chopper until crushed into a paste. I like grinding my spices in this compact but powerful grinder with a spice chopper for wet spices such as onion, ginger, and garlic.
Next, heat the oil in a cooking or deep frying pan at medium-high heat. Add the chopped onion and fry until it turns translucent, soft, and yellowish.
Stir in the dry spices and ginger garlic paste to the onion. Fry for a few minutes until all the spices release aroma before adding coconut milk. Then, cook vigorously at high heat until the coconut milk is slightly reduced.
Add the salt and tamarind (or lemon juice), stir well, and bring it to a simmer at medium heat. Once the coconut milk thickens, add the shrimp and stir frequently. Cook the shrimp for 3-4 minutes or until they all turn opaque.
Pro Tips For the Best Shrimp Curry
- Pan-roast the whole spices before grinding them; this little trick will create a better aroma.
- Stir-fry the spices until they are really cooked and shiny. The released aroma will be more delicious.
- Cook the coconut milk until it thickens and looks slightly oily. You can decide its consistency according to your preference. However, a consistency of single cream is best.
- Ensure you keep stirring the shrimp as they cook, and turn the heat off as soon as they all turn opaque. If you cook longer, the shrimp’s texture will be hard and rubbery.
Storing and Reheating
Got some leftovers? Store them in the fridge in a tight-lidded container; they will be OK for a few days. When you’re ready for round two, warm it up slowly on the stove or give it a zap in the microwave. It should take a few minutes. Easy!
What You Enjoy the Curry With
This curry has a relatively thin sauce and is best eaten with plain Basmati rice. However, enjoying it with fluffy naan bread or even over noodles is OK.
Want to keep it light? A side of veggies works excellent, too. Some stir-fried broccoli or dried eggplant curry will be good side dishes.
FAQs
What is shrimp curry made of?
This Goan-style shrimp curry is made of shrimp, onion, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, black peppercorns, turmeric powder, paprika powder, chili powder, ginger, garlic, and coconut milk.
What to serve with shrimp curry
This curry is best served with plain white rice. However, you can enjoy it with flatbread, such as naan bread or chapati. Simple stir-fried broccoli or eggplant curry are good choices to serve as a food spread.
How long does shrimp curry last in the fridge?
You can keep your shrimp curry in a tight-lid container and store it in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days.
Shrimp Curry Recipe
Equipment
- Spice grinder and chopper
- Deep frying pan or
- Cooking pan
- Slotted spoon
Ingredients
- 1½ pounds headless peeled, and deveined raw tiger shrimp
- 2 teaspoons whole coriander seeds
- 1 teaspoon whole cumin seeds
- 8 whole black peppercorns
- 1 teaspoon paprika powder
- ½-1 teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1- inch ginger
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1 medium brown onion finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons cooking oil
- 3 cups/ 750 millilitres of canned coconut milk
- ¾ teaspoon salt or according to taste
- 1 tablespoon tamarind paste or half of a lemon juice
Instructions
- Place all the dry spices, i.e., whole coriander seeds, whole cumin seeds, black peppercorns, paprika powder, chili powder, and turmeric powder in the spice grinder. Grind them until they become fine powder. Set aside.
- Chop the ginger and garlic with two tablespoons of water in a spice chopper until they become a paste.
- Heat the oil in a deep frying pan or a cooking pan, and fry the chopped onion until it becomes translucent and lightly golden.
- Add the dry spices, ginger garlic paste, and stir-fry until the spices release an aroma.
- Pour in the coconut milk, salt, and tamarind paste (lemon juice). Cook at medium-high heat until the coconut milk thickens and shiny. You can put the lid on if you want.
- Lastly, add the shrimp and frequently stir as you cook for about 3 minutes or until all the shrimp turn opaque. Turn the heat off.
Notes
- Make sure you shake the coconut milk can before using it so it can emulsify with spices quickly.
- Keep an eye on the shrimp when cooking. Do not overcook. Turn the heat off as soon as they all turn opaque. Otherwise, they will become hard and rubbery.
Nutrition
Disclaimer
Nutritional info in this recipe is only estimate using online calculator. You should refer to it as a guide only. Please verify with your own data if you seek an accurate info.
