Spicy Shrimp Curry Recipe with home-made spice powder and Shubho Poila Boishak

Now that Easter holidays have started here, I do have some relaxed mornings to start off our days. Spring feels so refreshing all around us, with beautiful spring blossoms enticing our eye sight everywhere. Many times we have also touched and felt those soft cherry blossoms or the Hawthorn blossoms that are scattered along on our many walking trails here. Public parks are getting busier with picnic outings, although it still is nippy during the evenings or with other sorts of activities as well. This indeed gives us some push to be little more active, well when I say active I mean activating this dormant blog, not in other way precisely.

And soon it will be poila boishak on Tuesday.Well, cook delicious food and celebrate what ever way you prefer with your family and friends. So, here wishing all of you readers Shubho poila boishak.May the New Year fulfills all your dreams and wishes.

Here is shrimp curry with home-made spice powder.Chingrir jhaal with home-made spice powder. I guess I have already blogged about a new combination of spice powder that I have made couple of months back. I have even blogged a recipe of chicken with that spice powder.Here.
That spice powder remains the base spice for this curry with chingri or shrimp. I have found them even tastier. We do make shrimp less as my husband is allergic to shrimp, but when ever we mother-daughter due cook shrimp, we relish a lot. This spice powder was made with dry anar dana/pomegranate seeds and desiccated coconut as told earlier. We didn’t have any left-overs.Make and have it with rice or what ever way you prefer; this will really be a crowd puller.Next time I am going to make it with jumbo prawns for sure.

Since, I was cooking this for my kid, I almost halved the spice content, but if you do really like spice and hotness, please go ahead and add 4-5 slit green chilies or even more red pepper powder as well. Shrimp again I don’t have to tell you that they need just a stir /fry for 4- 5 mints or till they turn pale and changes color, otherwise be prepared to have a rubbery shrimp. In any case, if you really ask me I do like both, as for me shrimp is a shrimp and Chingri is something one can always enjoy, cooked to perfection or even if it’s over-cooked.

Spicy Shrimp curry with home-made spice powder
Recipe requirements
250 Gms of small shrimp
2 tbs of home-made spice powder recipe is here
½ tsp of garlic powder or two garlic cloves crushed
½ tsp of red pepper powder
½ tsp of turmeric powder
¾ tsp of salt or as per taste
1 cup of finely chopped coriander leaves
2-3 tbs of mustard oil
Method
Wash and clean shrimp, discard shell if any. It’s better to cut the head and tail out if it’s already not done by your fishmonger.
Now marinate cleaned shrimp with salt and turmeric powder. Keep aside for half an hour.
Now heat up a fry pan/saucepan/kadai, add mustard oil.Add in galic if using fresh.
Now add in marinated shrimp. Add in home-made spice powder and red pepper powder and garlic powder.
Writing the recipe of home-made spice powder again, so that you all can have some ideas.
From previous post-here

Dry roast cumin 4 tbs of cumin seeds+ 2 tbs of panch phoron+5-6 cardamom+5-6 cloves+5-6 dry red chilies for about 1-2 mints, just to heat them up. Now dry grind these spices with 1/2 cup of desiccated coconut+ coconut powder and 1/2 cup of dried anar dana/pomegranate seeds. You can use fresh coconut instead of dry and desiccated coconut but the shelf life is reduced then and also it is advisable to store them in fridge. Otherwsie, use grated “gari” or desiccated coconut what ever is available. The small dry red chilies which are somewhat more hot is used in this spice which makes it very hot, so be careful while adjusting red pepper powder.

"Gari" – dried coconut/khopra  which is readily available in India and abroad and this not to be confused with dried cassava powder that are available here abroad.

Adjust salt if necessary. Add in finely chopped coriander leaves. Cover and let it cook for about 6-7 mints or the shrimp changes color.
Serve and enjoy. I have served it over cooked couscous, with butternut squash+potato stir/fry and a portion of Chicken Tandoori. As a healthy practice some salad leaves were also included. A whole some meal itself.

Wish all you readers a very Shubho Poila Boishak, Baisakhi,Puthandu,Puram Vishu and Rongali Bihu  .

Cook good food, enjoy and have a Shubho Nabo Barsha everyone.

Happy Cooking Friends