The Goan Prawn Curry

The Goan curry is the most popular preparation and is a part of every Goan family ’ s diet. There are various variations to this preparation. Unfortunately, most of the restaurants and even households do not make this variation with coconut milk. I guess it works out to be more expensive as you need more coconut.

The coconut curry is said to have made its way to the Goan coastline from Eastern Burma by the Portuguese. Although there are a lot of arguments to this theory, it holds a lot of good as, the Goan curry with coconut milk is very similar in appearance, taste and preparation to the all-famous Burmese Khow Suey .

The Goan curry has different faces and is made differently in various parts of Goa and by different communities, namely the Hindus, Christians and the Muslims. Within these communities, there are various tribes and castes that have their own verve to the Goan curry.

To make a good curry, you need two large coconuts grated, six dried red chilies. You could add more chilies for a brighter curry or you could use the Kashmiri variety, if you like your curry mild, silt two or three green chilies, two large onions, finely chopped up, some black tamarind pulp. To add zing to your curry, twenty prawns, de-veined and shelled, marinated with rock salt and turmeric powder.

You need to grind the red chilies with the coconut on a rogdo-the grinding stone (not necessary you can use electric grinder) and extract the milk till coconut is dry.discard the dry coconut. Put the extracted milk in kunnlem (earthen cooking vessel) and bring to boil for ten minutes .add in the chopped onions by crushing them in your hand and the tamarind pulp. As the curry begins to thicken, add the prawns and the green chilies. Check the seasoning.

The tamarind could be substituted with kokum that also gives a nice brilliant color to the curry. Once the curry is thick, it is ready to serve along with the best known accompaniment, parboiled brown rice (ukdde tandul), fried fish, salad and mango pickle. One important point to note is that the curry must not be over boiled till the oil of the coconut begins to render as this preparation does not contain any added fat or oil.

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!!As things begin to hot up, lets step into a house in the neighborhood and see what`s cooking. Let`s take a close look at a very old friend and teaster, the Goan Sausage(choris)and rub shoulders with this smart and lusty Goan delicacy