Shrimp Tamatar Curry

This is my first NV dish after I started regular blogging. Though I posted some before this, I feel awkward to publish non-veg food posts that they may embrass my vegie foodies. But then I can't leave out my NV foodies too, right. Moreover these days most of the NV blogs have blogged about shrimp or prawns and its my turn now.

So here you go all my seafood lovers, especially who just drool for Shrimp, here is my version of Tamatar Shrimp Curry.
I really miss those fresh small prawns back home. Their flavour, taste absolutely adorable. Enough if I manage to buy fresh ones here they can't come upto that taste.

Its so amazing with shrimp/prawn or as a matter of fact any seafood, how the raw shrimpy/fishy smell turns into mind blowing oroma when they are cooked the right way.

Back home we pay these vendors to clean the shrimps. But here if we are not buying the cleaned frozen ones( they don't have the right texture for the curry recipe) we have to do it oursevles. Never in my life would I have dreamt of cleaning prawns. The look of them use to scare me before they are de-shelled. And here I'm all diligently cleaning them if I want to have a shrimp treat. Cause it takes patience to de-shell and more if we want to de-vein them. Although most of the time it is my D.Hubby filling this post for me. Cause he loves seafood, and not to mention "shrimp". So if he wants a treat this is part it.

Well this is what life is... we have to do things sometimes even though we don't like to do. And we eventually learn the lesson that is was not so difficult than we thought and also to receive we have to give.

Now coming to recipe, Shrimp can taste good even with the fewest spices added to them and just sauted. But this is one of the methods I use to make the taste excellent.
Ingredients:

1 lb deshelled shrimp/prawns (de-vein them if desired)
3 big - Tomatoes cut into small cubes
2 big - Onions finely cut
3 pods - Garlic finely chooped
4 medium - Green chilies Slit
1 reem - Curry leaves
1 tsp - Red chilly powder (increase if you want it spicy)
2 Tbp - Oil
Salt - to taste
Finely chopped - coriander leaves( keep the stem part seperate)

Procedure:
Heat up a kadai(pot) add oil, when oil is heated add garlic, saute and then add green chillies, saute and add the onions & curry leaves.
Fry the onions till translucent. Throw in the stems(cut into small) of the corainder leaves at this time.
This is my personal observation...Usually we put the Coriander leaves at the end, but in this recipe, if we add the stem part while frying the onions, it gives a very exotic oroma which is carried thru the finish of the dish. So this Shrimp carry is almost coriander flavoured along with tomatoes,
Now add the tomatoes and cook them well till they loose their shape and the mixture in the kadai almost looks like a paste.
Add in the red chilly powder and salt, mix well till all the masala goes into the mixture and the raw smell goes away.
Now add the cleaned shrimp and mix well to coat them evenly with the masala.
Add a bit of water if you want this dish to be on a gravy side.
Cover and cook for 7 - 10 minutes.
Once the shrimp is cooked and the gravy starts sticking to them, garnish with the coriander leaves and remove from heat.

Though this is a simple preparation, the taste is extremely commendable.

This goes good just with plain rice, or rice wiht rasam or sambar. The gravy is good to eat with Idilies, dosa or chapati, roti.

So this being such a versatile side dish, should be cherished for sure.