Tuesday 25 June 2013

Unakka Chemmeen Curry | Dried Shrimp Curry | Dried Prawn Curry

Dried Shrimps/Prawns cooked in tamarind extract & coconut sauce



It's been a while since I posted some non-veg recipes. So when I was going through the draft pics, this one grabbed my attention. What else can be termed as the comfort food of Indians living abroad. It's none other than the dried fish. The fresh or processed fish that you get in many of the countries will not have the taste of the fish that we get or eat in India. No complaints here, as each place has it's own unique cuisine coz of the taste & type of the ingredients that it owns !! And hence the Indian curry or gravy that we prepare here, will also differ in taste to a small extent. 

And that's where the dried fish becomes the hero. On your way back from vacation, neatly pack up some dried fish and it becomes the savior :) It definitely guarantees you the authentic flavor & aroma that you always enjoy back at home !! So without any further pep talk, let's dive into the recipe..




Recipe Source: Mil


Serves: 2 persons


I Took: 40 minutes



I Used:

Unakka Chemmen/Dry Shrimps - ¼ cup
Tomato - 1 no - medium sized
Tamarind - A big goosebery size
Green Chilly - 2 nos
Turmeric powder - ½ tsp
Salt - As Needed


To Roast & Grind:
Oil - 1 tsp
Grated Coconut - ¼ cup
Shallots - 5-6 nos
Red Chilly powder - 1 tsp
Coriander powder - 2 tsp

To Temper:
Oil - 1 tsp
Mustard - ½ tsp
Shallots - 3-4 nos
Curry leaves - A sprig

The Way:

  1. Wash & clean the dried shrimps with a little turmeric powder & keep aside
  2. Soak tamarind in warm water for 20 minutes & extract the pulp out of it
  3. In a pan heat 1 tsp of oil. Add the ingredients under 'To Roast & Grind' & saute on medium fire until it turns slight brown in color
  4. Allow it to cool. Add 2-3 tbsp water & grind them to a paste
  5. In another pan add the tamarind extract, chopped tomatoes, slit green chilly,  turmeric powder, cleaned shrimp & salt and cook for 10-15 minutes or until it's done
  6. Adjust salt as the dried shrimp will already have some in it
  7. Add the ground paste to the gravy and mix well. Cook in low flame for 5 minutes
  8. Meanwhile heat 1 tsp of oil in the first pan. Splutter mustard. Add shallots & curry leaves and saute till the shallots turn golden brown. Take care not to burn
  9. Add this tempering to the gravy, when done
  10. Remove from flame and serve with steamed rice
Cheers,
Chitz

40 comments:

  1. Curry looks very tempting and love sea food anytime..Chitz that was a great platter, dinner time here n u made me hungry

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  2. Oh Chitz this Kerala fair is not fair! I am missing home :(.. But the curry looks so delicious!

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  3. Un piatto molto gustoso e invitante!!!! Bravissima, felice serata

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  4. Very tempting and finger licking shrimpcurry... beautiful clicks

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  5. Dried fish packed from home during vacation!! Interesting yaar!! I know sometimes, it is the readily available ones which saves the day!
    Looks yum and love the clicks, also I liked the other recipe plated near this curry!
    Good one.

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    1. Ahh.. I knew u wud notice Pavithra.. That's green gram & plantain puzhukku.. Wud post it soon :)

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    2. HeHe, my eyes wander around every nook and corner :-)
      Can't wait!!

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  6. that luks mouthwatering.....m craving for it.

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  7. can't say anything about shrimp, but the curry looks awesome.

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  8. Just love the flavors and dried shrimps are so popular over here. In fact we use it for many dishes, into fried rice, gravy dish, stir fries etc etc.

    The curry can also be spread into bread slices for a savory type of sandwich.

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  9. Chitz i just loved your plate and would finish the whole thing in a minute

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  10. Slurp, mouthwatering here..Wonderfully done,who can resist to this chemmeen curry.

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  11. Pls pass that plate...super tempting

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  12. Hey Chitz loooove unakka chemeen. I hate running out of stock.
    Love the appalam on the side I forget its name..We used to put those on all my fingers like rings as kids.

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    1. Haha... I know.. It's soo comfortable having that in stock always :D And btw, we call those appala fryums'.. Not sure if it's called that way ;)

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  13. You are so tempting me Chitra :) The curry looks so so delish!

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  14. Just love the prawn curry in any way...

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  15. Looks soo good, perfect and tempting Chitz :-)

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  16. u are doing me nothing gud here, Chitz..this is soo addictive a dish !! just love it ! and there i am , trying to be on a diet from today, n sitting n drooling over these ! :( and hey ! feel free to drop by my space too when you get the time. just posted on some handy parenting tips to "sane motherhood" on my "pick quicks" blog.

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  17. drooling here, love the platter to core :-)

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  18. mouthwatering curry...I am getting hungry here :)

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  19. Hi chitz who can resist that platter...........i love prawns and dry ones makes nice gravy...

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  20. That's an amazing platter.How I wish i could just eat it right away ! Awesome Chitz :)

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  21. Oh dear I m literally drooling over ur pics..my ammamma used to make this curry a lot in meen chatti and I used to take some rice to wipe out the last bit of it from chatti with rice.l.so yummy !!

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  22. I've never liked unakka meen/chemeen...too salty for my taste, but now that I haven't eaten onnaka meen for ages , I wish I could taste some. Mayb my tastebuds have grown up :-P Nice dish.

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  23. love shrimps in any form,drooling here

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  24. Thanks everyone for your awesome comments.. U all made my day :)

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  25. Wow! my favourite..looks delicious.

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  26. My hubby would love this one. I especially like the boti vathal you've paired it with.

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  27. I have never tried dried shrimp before, but it looks fantastic in this curry. Yum!

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  28. I love dried prawns..this curry looks so delicious ...making me drool!!

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  29. Unakka chemmen curry adipoli, pinnae puzhukum pappada fryum unnu kushal.

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  30. Wow me drooling my fav. unaka chameen, nothing you need if you have a dash of this. Love the receipe, I make it with raw mango, will try this version sometime.

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