Prawn Pickle
Prawn pickle which is one of Mangalore’s favourite condiments. It is a perfect accompaniment to your simple everyday meals!
Servings 1 200 ml bottle
Ingredients
- 450 - 500 Grams of small cleaned prawns
- 1/2 teaspoon of turmeric powder
- 2 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons mustard oil or gingelly Indian sesame oil * see notes
For the salt & vinegar solution:
- 2 cups of water
- 3-4 teaspoons vinegar
- 2-3 teaspoons salt
For the pickle masala:
- 15 long dry red chillies Byadge or Kashmiri – deseeded
- 3 teaspoons mustard
- 2 teaspoons cumin seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon of turmeric powder
For the tempering / seasoning:
- 2-3 green chilies cut into ¼ inch pieces
- 10-15 curry leaves
- 8-10 cloves of garlic cut into pieces
- 1 inch ginger cut into small pieces
- 1/2 teaspoon of asafoetida hing
- 2-3 tablespoons of gingelly sesame oil
Instructions
- Remove as much moisture as possible from the cleaned prawns - you can use a kitchen tissue to blot out the excess moisture. Then marinate them with the salt and turmeric powder. Keep aside for 20-30 mins (the longer the better)
- Heat the mustard/gingelly oil in a wide based frying pan and fry the prawns till there is no moisture (prawns will release some water so you need to fry until they are dry) and the prawns are golden brown. Remove onto a plate and allow to cool completely.
- Next, prepare the salt & vinegar solution. Boil and cool all the ingredients mentioned under 'For the salt & vinegar solution
- To make the spice blend, dry roast the red chillies, mustard seeds and cumin seeds one by one on a moderately heated tawa/skillet. Remove onto a plate and allow the ingredients to cool slightly. Transfer them into the dry grinding jar of your mixie, add turmeric powder and make a fine paste using 2-3 tablespoons of the prepared salt & vinegar solution
- Prepare the tempering by heating oil in a wide based kadhai/pan on a moderate heat (so as to not burn the ingredients). Add the asafoetida, curry leaves, garlic, ginger, green chillies one by one and fry them for a few seconds between each addition. Once fried, add the ground pickle masala and fry till the oil separates from the mixture. This should take about 10-15 minutes on a slow heat. Remove from heat and cool completely
- Once the mixture has cooled down mix it with the fried prawns and a little of the salt & vinegar solution (depending on the amount of gravy required in the pickle)
Notes
Please note that you will get two varieties of sesame oil - one is the Indian variety, labelled as 'gingelly', used widely in the preparation of Indian pickles. The other variety is oriental, used widely in the preparation of Chinese and other oriental dishes. Please buy the Indian variety which if you are living abroad should be available in most well stocked Indian stores.