Prawn Pickle - South Indian Style

Prawn Pickle - South Indian Style

As I live in the coastal Andhra, fresh seafood is easily available. So to kick start Easter my special Prawn pickle

Health Advisory - Very tasty but not for the health conscious.

Ingredients

250 gms Fresh Prawns ( Must be very fresh)

1 Tea spoon Turmeric Powder
250 ml Gingelly oil
250 gms Garlic - Peeled
100 gms whole Red chilies
8-10 Green chilies (slit into half)
200 ml Vinegar
1 tea spoon Cumin seeds
1 tea spoon Mustard seeds
1/2 tea spoon Fenugreek (Methi) Seeds
few sprigs of Curry leaves
Salt to taste

for extra heat
2 table spoons Red chili powder (optional)

Procedure

1. Clean the prawns. Add Turmeric powder and rinse well.
2. Saute the prawns in a pan with 1/2 spoon oil till they turn opaque. Don't fully cook the prawns. Set aside to cool
3. Blend the half cooked prawns to a very coarse mixture (Its nice to find whole bits of prawn while eating)
4. Grind Garlic, Red chilies and Vinegar to a coarse paste
5. Heat the oil in a heavy bottom pan. Temper the Cumin, Mustard and Fenugreek seeds. After they pop, add the curry leaves and green chilies
6. Add the Garlic - Red chilies mixture prepared earlier and fry till the mixture loses the raw garlic smell and oil separates
7. Once the mixture is cooked, add the prawn mixture and cook for an extra 5 minutes
8. Add salt to taste (its a pickle so be generous)
9. Store in air tight containers in the fridge
10. Tastes better the next day 

Tastes great with anything from powa, upma, dosai, idli, sambar rice, lemon rice, chappati... the list is endless

Storage life - 3 weeks in the fridge. Use dry spoon while scooping out. Don't be tempted to put you fingers in.. very hard I know :D

Let me know your comments

Take care.