Not a fish, yet prawn / shrimp is considered the most versatile and tasty amongst all the fish varieties by common man like us. Versatile in the sense that it can be cooked in many ways, it's open to any kind of experiment. Either way it tastes great. At times, I forget it is not a fish. Available in many sizes, it is quite common in our kitchen, it can be mixed & matched with various ingredients if available. Every country, every region has its own way of cooking it. With globalisation, we are open to more and more recipes of prawns.
In our childhood, prawns were not that expensive, they adorned our plates quite often. I am talking about Tiger prawns which once cooked would cover a medium sized plate . When served with steamed rice, we thought what do they talk about heaven, if this is not heaven, what is. On Sundays, a hearty meal with prawn curry and rice was fulfilling, one could make out from the noise of snoring afterwards. Yes weekend afternoon naps were as much a treat. I don't know why I am using past tense, we still practise this.
In our community, treating the son-in-law with a Tiger / Golda Chingri [?] Prawn or Hilsa Fish curry is almost a ritual. Whether the wallet permits or not, it is a matter of prestige. The over indulgent mom-in-laws give the ultimatum to the poor pa-in-laws....I don't know anything, the freshest and the biggest prawns in the market should adorn my kitchen today. The father-in-law would come back sweating and a big hole in pocket, yet with an amazing smile of satisfaction on his face.
Yes, the embarrassed son-in-law however would have them in minutes, haha. Embarrassment has nothing to do with taste buds. Simple living does not necessarily mean simple eating.... if one is like me....a top to bottom foodie. It was a Friday. The refrigerator was almost empty, it had few shrimps, bell peppers and 2-3 variety of sauces. I was thinking what to do and how quickly; came up with this BLACK PEPPER SHRIMPS.
Shrimps : 500 gm
Bell Pepper[green, red] : 1/2 of each
Onion : 1
Green Chilli : 2-3
Garlic[minced] : 1tsp
Ginger[minced] : 1tsp [I skipped]
Crushed Black Pepper : 1/2 tsp or more
Salt : As required
Soy Sauce : 1 tbsp
Corn Flour : 2 tsp
Oil : 2 tbsp
Spring Onion or Coriander leaves for garnish. I did not have so I skipped.
PROCEDURE :
Discard the head and the tail of the shrimps, devein and wash. Cut the onion and bell peppers into strips, wash. Slit the green chillies. Add little salt, black pepper to the shrimps.
Heat oil in pan. Add the minced garlic & ginger, fry until light brown.
Add the shrimps discarding the marinade, fry for 3-4 minutes.
Add onions. Stir fry until they are translucent. Add the bell peppers and the slitted green chillies. Saute for 1-2 minutes.
Add soy sauce, more of crushed black pepper, salt. Stir fry at high heat for 2-3 minutes. Switch off gas stove, we are done.
Serve it hot with noodles / steamed rice / fried rice!!! I didn't deep fry the prawns coated in cornflour to avoid too much of oil consumption.
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