Seafood

Deep-fried spicy calamari rings

| Rekha Vengalil


You Need –
  • Fresh squid – 250 grams, cleaned and cut into rings
  • Plain Flour – 30 grams
  • Chili powder – 1 teaspoon
  • Vegetable oil – for deep frying
  • Salt – as per taste

How to –
  • In a bowl, combine the flour, chili powder and salt.
  • Toss the calamari rings in the seasoned flour to combine well.
  • Heat the oil a frying pan, Make sure the oil is hot. To test, drop a calamari ring in the oil and it should sizzle at once.
  • Cook the rings in batches until golden brown. Drain on a kitchen towel and serve warm.

Chemmeen-beans ularthiyathu/prawns stir fried with beans

| Rekha Vengalil

Chemmeen-beans ularthiyathu

You need –

  • Prawns – 500 grams. 
  • Beans – 250 grams (Slit length-wise and chopped 1 inch in length)
  • Shallots – 10 nos
  • Garlic – 3 big cloves
  • Crushed dry chillies – 1 ½ tablespoon
  • Curry leaves – 1 stalk
  • Salt – as per taste
  • Coconut oil – 2 tablespoon

How to –

  • In a pestle and mortar, crush the garlic and shallots. Cook the prawns in boiling water with ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder.
  • Heat oil in a pan, add the crushed garlic, shallots, chilies and curry leaves  Fry till the raw smell is gone and the onions turn golden brown.
  • Add the prawns, beans and cook till the beans in done. Make sure the beans is crunchy and not over cooked.
  • Serve hot with rice and curry. I had it with curd rice..:-)
Chemmeen-beans ularthiyathu

Fish Mappas

| Rekha Vengalil
Fish Mappas
You need –
  • Fish – 500 grams
  • Coconut oil – 2 tablespoons
  • Onion – 1 big, thinly sliced.
  • Green chillies – 5, slit length wise
  • Curry leaves – 2 stalks
  • Shallots – 8-10 no’s
  • Ginger – minced 1 tablespoon
  • Garlic – 4 cloves, minced
  • Tomato – 1, cut into small cubes
  • Meat masala – 2 tablespoon
  • Vinegar – 1 teaspoon
  • Thick coconut milk – ½ cup
  • Thin coconut milk – ½ cup
  • Salt – as per taste
For tempering –
  • Unsalted Butter- 1 teaspoon
  • Shallot – 2 no’s
  • Curry leaves – 5-6 no’s

How to –
  • Clean and wash the fish.
  • Heat the oil in a skillet, add the Onions, green chillies and curry leaves and fry till onions turn golden brown.
  • Add in the shallots, ginger, garlic and continue to fry till the raw smell is gone.
  • Add the tomato, cook till soft. Reduce the heat; add meat masala and vinegar.
  • Add the fish and mix well. Add the thin coconut milk; cover and cook till fish is done and the gravy is thick.
  • Add the thick coconut milk; mix and turn off the heat.
  • In a small frying pan, heat the butter and fry the shallots, curry leaves. Add into the fish and mix well.
  • Serve hot with rice or roti.
Fish Mappas

Hot chili prawns

| Rekha Vengalil
Hot chili prawns
You need – 
  • Prawns – 250 grams, shelled and de-veined
  • Vegetable oil – 1 tablespoon
  • Large garlic cloves – 4, finely chopped
  • Fresh ginger – 2 teaspoon, finely chopped
  • Red chilies – 2 chopped (de-seeded if you are not easy with heat)
  • Tomato ketchup – 1 tablespoon
  • Chili sauce – 2 tablespoon
  • Dark soy sauce – 1 tablespoons
  • Brown sugar – 2 teaspoon
  • Hot water – ¼ cup or as required
  • Lime juice – 2 teaspoon
  • 2 spring onions, chopped
  • Coriander leaves – chopped 4 tablespoon


How to –

  • Heat a pan on a high flame and add the oil.
  • Add in the chopped garlic, ginger and chilies  and stir fry until the chilies have darkened but careful not to let it burn.
  • Add the prawns and continue frying till they turn pink.
  • Stir in the tomato ketchup, soy and chili sauce, sugar, pour in the hot water and lime juice.
  • Stir and cook till the sauce is think.
  • Garnish with spring onion and chopped coriander and serve hot.
Hot chili prawns

Naadan Ayala curry (Kerala Mackerel curry)

| Rekha Vengalil
IMG_6145-002
Update with new pictures.
IMG_6220You need
  • Mackerel – 500 grams
  • Small onion – chopped ½ cup
  • Ginger – sliced 1 teaspoon
  • Green chilies – 2 slit lengthwise
  • Curry leaves – 2 twigs
  • Kudampuli/Gambooge – 4-5
  • Coriander powder – 4 tablespoon
  • Kashmir chili powder – 2 tablespoon
  • Turmeric – ¼ teaspoon
  • Crushed pepper – ½ teaspoon
  • Thin coconut milk – 2 cups
  • Thick coconut milk – 1/2 cup
  • Oil – 2 tablespoon
  • Fenugreek – ½ teaspoon

IMG_6251

How to –
  • Heat oil in a pan. Add the fenugreek and let it start to splutter.
  • Add the ginger, garlic, curry leaves and green chilies. Sauté till the raw smell is gone.
  • Add the onion and cook till the onions turn golden brown
  • Add all the dry masala powder, Kudampuli/Gambooge, salt and fry till oil start to separate.
  • Add the thin coconut milk and bring to boil.
  • Add the fish,cook till done and the gravy is thick.
  • Add the thick coconut milk. Swirl the pan lightlyand bring to boil.
  • Turn off the heat. Serve with rice.
IMG_6226

 

Quick prawn biryani

| Rekha Vengalil 

For all the seafood lovers, here’s a delicious prawn biryani… I was running late for preparing lunch, but wanted to make something nice as our Sunday lunch at home is always special. Since there was not much time for marinating and the long cooking procedures, I decided to make a quick biryani and made this delicious rice in about 45 minutes (where I usually take more than an hour). So here’s the Quick prawn biryani recipe.
Quick prawn biryani

You will need-

For the Rice:
  • Rice – 1 cup
  • Bay leaf – 1
  • Cinnamon – 1 small stick
  • Clove – 1
  • Fennel seeds – ¼ teaspoon
  • Cardamom – 2
  • Hot water – 2 cups
  • Salt – As per taste

For the the prawn masala:
  • Tiger Prawns – 250 grams
  • Onions – 1 cup finely chopped
  • Ginger paste – 1 teaspoon
  • Garlic paste – 1 teaspoon
  • Green chillies – 1 (or 2 if you need it spicier) slit lengthwise
  • Biryani Masala – 2 teaspoon
  • Yogurt – 4 tablespoon
  • Turmeric – ¼ teaspoon
  • Ghee – 1 tablespoon
  • Coriander leaves – finely chopped 1 tablespoon
  • Salt – as per taste

For Garnishing:
  • Friend Onions – 1/2 cup
  • Coriander leaves – 2 tables spoon finely chopped
  • Mint leaves 2 tablespoon finely chopped
  • Friend cashews and Raisins – 10 each
  • Saffron strands – a pinch and soaked in 1 tablespoon milk
How to –

Cooking the rice:
  • Soak rice for 15 minutes and drain completely
  • Cook the rice with all the dry spice, salt and 2 cups water till done.

Prawn masala:
Quick prawn biryani
  • Heat oil in deep pan. Shallow fry the prawns and set aside.
  • In the same pan add the onions and sauté till golden brown
  • Add the ginger-garlic paste, chilies and continue to fry till the raw smell is gone.
  • Add the biryani masala turmeric and salt. Fry for a minute
  • Add the yogurt and cook for a minute
  • Add the prawns and mix well to combine. Add the chopped coriander leaves. Cover and cook till the prawns are completely cooked
  • Add water if you need to as you don’t want the gravy to be too dry but enough to mix well with the rice.
  • Once the prawns is done. Lay the cooked rice on top of the prawn masala. Sprinkle the saffron milk, half of the fried onions, chopped coriander and mint leaves.
  • Cover and cook on low flame for about 5 minutes.

Quick prawn biryani
Garnish with the remaining fried onions, cashews and raisins. Serve hot

Please note – you can use tomatoes instead of yogurt. You will need 1 medium tomato.