Recipes

Golda Chingrir Malaikari or Tiger Prawns Cooked in Coconut Cream and Spices

Chingri Malaikari is an epic Bengali prawn curry with the umami flavours from large freshwater tiger prawns cooked in luscious super-creamy coconut cream and infused with a subtle hint of turmeric, chillies and spices. This seafood delight may sound and look time-consuming but it is super easy and requires fewer steps than a simple egg curry!

Ingredients

  • 1 Kg Freshwater Tiger Prawns (you can use a different variety but make sure they are large)
  • 1.5 Cup Onion Paste
  • 2 Bay Leaves
  • 4-5 Dried Red Chilies
  • 2-3 Cardamom Pods
  • 3-4 Cloves
  • 2-inches Cinnamon Stick
  • 1 Tbsp Ginger Paste
  • 1.5 Tsp Turmeric
  • 2 Tsp Kashmiri Red Chilli Powder (you can adjust the spice level) 
  • 1 Tsp Garam Masala
  • Vegetable Oil/Mustard Oil
  • 1/2 Cup Yoghurt
  • 8-9 Green Chillies (slit)
  • 400 ml Coconut Milk 
  • 1 Cup Cream of Coconut (or malai)
  • 1/2 Cup Coconut (freshly grated)
  • Salt to Taste
  • Sugar
  • Ghee

Preparation

Prep: 10 minutes
Cooking: 20 minutes

  1. Wash, clean and devein the prawns. You may leave the flavorful head intact.
  2. Marinate the prawns with a pinch of salt and 1 tsp turmeric powder. Set aside.
  3. Heat oil in a large deep flat pan. Fry the prawns on medium to low heat for about a minute. Do not crowd the pan, fry the prawns in batches. Do not overcook as there is a risk of the meat getting tough. Once done, set aside.
  4. Now put some ghee in the same pan with dried red chillies, bay leaf, cardamom, cloves, and cinnamon. Add onion paste along with 1 1/2 tsp sugar, and fry for about 10 minutes on medium to low heat or until the onions are a nice golden brown. Sauté at regular intervals to make sure the onions don’t burn.
  5. Next, add the ginger paste and fry for another 5 minutes.
  6. Add turmeric and Kashmiri red chilli powder to the mix and keep sautéing to make sure the masala mix does not stick to the pan.
  7. When the oil starts to separate and the masala sticks to the pan, add in 1 cup of the coconut milk along with the slit green chillies and a pinch of salt.
  8. Beat the yoghurt, make sure there are no lumps and add it to the pan. Lower the heat and mix the masala immediately to prevent the yogurt from splitting. Cook it for 5 minutes.
  9. Now add the rest of the coconut milk, coconut cream and grated coconut. Cover and cook on medium to low heat for 5 minutes. Add in the prawns, cover and cook for 5-7 minutes more. At this stage, you may taste the curry and adjust the sugar and salt levels according to your taste buds.
  10. Turn off the heat and sprinkle garam masala before serving.

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Karishma Sen

As a travel writer, I was fortunate to have travelled to many countries and that allowed me to appreciate flavours from across the world. I grew up in a Bengali home, surrounded by a family of home cooks, eating food made by my Nana and watching my Amma and mom experiment with various flavours and ingredients so that every meal was truly special. Being a single parent, my mom has worked very hard to provide for me. While we may not agree on many things but the one thing that binds us is our love for good food. I have certainly absorbed my cooking skills from her. Thankfully married to a foodie and a food-loving family, I enjoy cooking for people - it brings me joy. Though the current pandemic has hit my industry too, I took this time to learn new cooking skills and techniques, which drove me to start a humble cake business. Through my recipes, I want to tell people that traditional cooking can be healthy and you don't need to eat just salads to lead a balanced life. I believe healthy eating is a balance of the good and the bad! I mean come on; little sugar can't be all that bad right. For me, the flavour is everything - natural flavours of ingredients and no substitutes. Food is close to my heart and my dream now is to excel as a cook and follow a career in the food industry.