Indian Recipes
Curry Leaf Prawn
Curry Leaf Prawn is a herby, spicy starter inspired by South Indian flavours. The flavours of curry leaf are earthy, herby and pure magic!
- Serves 3
- Prep 10 minutes
- Cook 15 minutes
- Total 25 minutes
Love prawn? You need to check out my Goan Prawn Curry, Prawn Green Curry, and Mexican Prawn Taco Avocado Salad recipes!
It would not be an exaggeration to call this Curry Leaf Prawn one of the best prawn dishes I have ever eaten. I feel like it has not received its limelight which is why I’m urging you to try it as soon as you finish reading this post.
Ingredients such as curry leaves, coconut, spices, and aromatics form the base of this prawn dish. When paired with perfectly cooked, plump and juicy prawns, you have a dish that’s warm, earthy, spicy, and insanely flavorful. And like most prawn dishes, this one comes together really quickly too!
- Requires minimal prep and has a short cook time, making it perfect when serving a large crowd
- Can be easily doubled, tripled or even halved
- The curry leaf paste can be made ahead to save even more time
Curry Leaf Prawn – Ingredients Overview
This curry leaf prawn calls for just a handful of ingredients, and all of them are pretty straightforward. If you live in India, or happen to cook Indian food often, chances are that you have most of them already. Hung curd in this recipe can be replaced with plain Greek Yoghurt and you can use either fresh or freshly frozen coconut depending on availability. Other than that, I would not recommend making swaps to the recipe.
Richa’s Top Tips To Make Curry Leaf Prawn
- Handling/Cooking prawns: Prawn cooks really quickly, and is easy to overcook. Perfectly cooked prawns tend to be opaque and have a pink-ish color as opposed to stark white, which is a clear sign of overcooked prawns.
- Frying curry leaves: Burnt curry leaves tend to lose all their flavor, which can heavily compromise the final taste of this dish. Fry the curry leaves for only 15-20 seconds – they should maintain their bright green colour. If they turn brown, they are burnt so discard them.
- Leftovers and storage: Leftover curry leaf prawn can be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 2 days. Simply reheat on a pan.
Frequently Asked Questions
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The recipe
Curry Leaf Prawn
This curry leaf prawn is bright, punchy, and full of flavor! Serve it as a snack as is, or with dal rice for something more wholesome. Either way, you simply cannot go wrong with this one!
- Serves 3
- Prep 10 minutes
- Cook 15 minutes
- Total 25 minutes
Ingredients
- ¾ cup curry leaves (divided)
- oil for frying
- ⅛ teaspoon turmeric
- 7 garlic cloves
- 2 tbsp grated coconut (fresh or frozen)
- 400 grams Prawns (deveined and peeled)
- 1 tbsp greek yogurt (hung curd)
- 1 tsp ginger garlic paste
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- 2 tbsp coconut oil
- ½ tsp mustard seeds
- ½ tsp chopped garlic
- 8-10 shallots (sliced or ¼ cup chopped onions)
- 2-3 green chillies (slit lengthwise)
- 1 tsp coriander powder
- ¾ tsp salt
Method
- 1
Heat 1.5 inch oil in a pan or kadhai and add curry leaves (leaving a handful of curry leaves aside for later). Fry for 20-30 seconds till the curry leaves change colour and become a brighter, darker green. If you are not into deep frying, you can also saute curry leaves in a little oil till they become a really bright green. Be careful not to burn them to brown – they’ll lose all their flavour.
- 2
Add the fried curry leaves, turmeric, garlic and grated coconut to a blender with a teaspoon of water and blend till smooth.
- 3
Marinate the prawns in yogurt, ginger garlic paste and pepper and set aside.
- 4
Heat coconut oil in a pan and add mustard seeds. Once they start popping, add sliced shallots. Saute till golden brown and add the garlic, green chillies and coriander powder. Saute for 30 seconds and add the marinated prawns.
- 5
Toss for a minute and add the curry leaf paste we made before along with a handful of curry leaves and salt.
- 6
Toss and cook for 3-4 minutes and turn off the flame. Serve hot with poppadoms and enjoy!
Notes
Notes: If you don’t have coconut oil, you can make this dish with any vegetable oil of your choice. Keep an eye on the stove when frying the curry leaves. They tend to burn very easily and end up losing color & flavor. If you use larger prawns, make sure to adjust the cook time accordingly.
Nutrition
- Calories 240 kcal
- Carbohydrates 28 g
- Protein 7 g
- Fat 12 g
- Saturated Fat 10 g
- Polyunsaturated Fat 0.3 g
- Monounsaturated Fat 1 g
- Cholesterol 0.3 mg
- Sodium 694 mg
- Potassium 294 mg
- Fiber 8 g
- Sugar 7 g
- Vitamin A 4476 IU
- Vitamin C 2377 mg
- Calcium 543 mg
- Iron 2 mg
Common questions
What type of prawns should I use in this recipe?
Any size of prawns works in this recipe except the really tiny ones because they’ll overcook really fast and become rubbery
Can I make this with another variety of seafood?
Absolutely! Fish fillets, crab meat, mussels, clams etc will all work well in this recipe
Is it possible to make a vegetarian/vegan version?
Of course! We can definitely vegetarian-ise this with paneer/tofu/potatoes or my favourite mushrooms. I actually make Curry Leaf Mushrooms fairly often!
