Prawn Chettinad

Calling all curry enthusiasts!! This is a must-try if you want to explore cooking a curry from scratch and yes, that means grinding your own spices to make this wonderful Prawn Chettinad.

The Chettinad curry originated from the region of Chettinadu in Tamil Nadu, South of India. The flavour is rich and full of depth from the freshly ground spices used in the curry. I’ve roasted coriander, black pepper, fennel seeds, cumin, chillies and desiccated coconut in a hard bottom pan. Once roasted, I’ve ground the spices in a spice grinder and cooked it in with a tomato sauce.

This Prawn Chettinad is so fragrant, you can really taste the pepper and coriander come through. If you’re looking for a rich, masala-style curry, this is the perfect dish. Nothing beats a home-cooked curry and whilst it’s not always practical on a weekday, you can save this for the weekend to give it a go. With my last Prawn Chettinad curry, I ground double the amount of spice required. If you’re time poor or want to make it easy on your next curry, this will save you time.

If you’re wondering which accompaniments would do well with this curry, why not try Farali Potatoes, the delicate flavours of this dish really compliments the Chettinad curry.

Prawn Chettinad

Spicella Recipes

A satisfying, fragrant and peppery curry made with a multitude of ground spices. This Prawn Chettinad is a must-try curry

4 from 1 vote

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 35 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine Indian

Servings 4

Equipment

• Karahi or non-stick pan

Ingredients

  

Ground spice mix

• 1 tsp Fennel seeds
• 1 tsp Cumin seeds
• 1 tsp Coriander seeds
• 2 tsp Black whole peppercorns
• 3 Dried red chillies (hot)
• ½ tsp Desiccated coconut

For the Curry

• 2 tbsp Coconut oil
• 5 Curry leaves
• 1 Cinnamon stick
• 3 Cardamom pods (slightly crushed)
• 1 Large onion (finely chopped)
• 10 g Ginger (grated)
• 4 cloves Garlic (grated)
• 300 ml Tomatoes (blended)
• 650 g Tiger Prawns (deshelled and deveined)
• ¾ tsp Salt
• 100ml Water
• Coriander to garnish

Instructions

 

• In the karahi or a non-stick pan, dry roast the following whole spices on a medium heat for approximately 5 minutes, stirring to avoid burning.
• In a spice grinder or a pestle and mortar, grind the spices into a fine powder. Set aside.
• In the pan, heat the coconut oil. Once hot temper the cinnamon, cardamom pods and curry leaves until they sizzle.
• Add the finely diced onions and let them cook until golden.
• Grate in the garlic and ginger and cook for 1-2 minutes.
• Mix in the blended tomatoes, salt and the ground spices (made earlier). Let this cook on a medium heat for approximately 10 minutes, until you see the oil start to separate.
• Add the prawns and pour in 100ml water. Let this cook on a low-medium heat for approximately 10 minutes or until cooked.
• Garnish with coriander.

Keyword Prawn Chettinad