Coconut Shrimp Curry & Tips On Making A Great Curry !

Tender shrimp simmered in coconut milk with some spices makes an amazing Indian style shrimp curry. It’s super easy to make and you can tailor the spice to suit your needs. I like eating at Indian restaurants but when they serve a dish like shrimp I feel cheated because it’s usually just a few pieces. When I eat shrimp I like to eat a large bowl so when I cook my shrimp curry, restaurant style at home I can :)! If Indian cooking intimidates you try this recipe: it’s super easy and you can’t fail. I generally make my own curry paste blending together some spices, but you can use curry powder or a curry sauce instead. I do recommend that you add your own garam masala at the end of cooking because most curry powders do not have enough garam masala spice in them. I have a homemade garam masala recipe if you want to make it from scratch. My family loves shrimp curry and I love it too since it’s easy to make: no chopping, cutting meat etc. I usually buy clean shrimp so I can just throw it in.  It tastes great over rice or with Indian bread. Since I am trying to eat grain free for the most part, I eat it with cauliflower rice. Either way this coconut shrimp curry is yummy!

Tips to making a good curry:

• Dice onion and tomato fine, since this will help create the base of your curry and will also help combine the flavors in your spices. Cook onion till you get to the translucent and soft stage. For a stronger taste fry it until it is golden brown. Be careful not to burn the onion.
• Ginger and garlic must be added after the onion is soft otherwise they may get burnt. It is essential to have enough moisture while cooking the curry especially when using dry spices. Feel free to add water in small quantities if you feel you do not have enough moisture while it’s cooking. Make sure you do not add too much water or your curry  paste will take a longer time to cook.
• Cook the spices well (at least 7- 10 minutes) before adding the meat. This is probably the most important step and the essence of a good curry. A good way to tell whether the spices have cooked well enough is to watch the mixture. When the oil separates from the mixture and floats on top, your mixture is ready for the meat, veggies or whatever you want to put in it.
• Add water or milk slowly so you can gauge how much you want to add depending on the consistency you want. I wanted very little gravy so I added only one cup of coconut milk to my recipe. You can add more if you want a thinner more soup like gravy. Milks you can add are coconut, almond, rice milk or cow’s milk. Yogurt, milk powder, cream, coconut cream, coconut milk powder, coconut meal, almond meal, desiccated coconut are also good thickeners.
• Spices like garam masala and herbs like cilantro must be added at the end of cooking. These impart a subtle flavor and the ultimate finishing tough to any curry. An exception to this rule would be if the dish was a cilantro/herb based dish where you would add the cilantro as a part of the cooking process!
• If you end up with a watery curry, just use some of the thickeners mentioned above and you can salvage your curry!

Nutrition Wise!

Loaded with protein, vitamin D, vitamin B3, and zinc, shrimp are an excellent, carbohydrate-free food. Coconut milk has wholesome fat which does not get stored as fat: one of the reasons I use it in all my recipes. Spices are loaded with antioxidants and phytochemicals! Use them liberally as much as you can handle to get nature’s best antioxidants. Read my post on Indian spices to learn about them and their magical properties!

Coconut Shrimp Curry

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Serves	6-8
Dietary	Diabetic, Gluten Free
Meal type	Main Dish, Side Dish
Misc	Child Friendly, Freezable, Gourmet, Pre-preparable, Serve Hot

Ingredients

• 1lb shrimp (devined and cleaned)
• 1 Large onion (diced)
• 2 tomatoes (diced)
• 1 Tsp ginger paste (or grated ginger)
• 1 Tsp garlic paste (or grated garlic)
• 1 Tsp cumin powder
• 1/2 Tsp chili powder
• 1/2 Tsp turmeric
• 1 Tsp coriander powder
• 1 Tsp garam masala
• 2 bell peppers (cut lengthwise)
• 1 Tbs coconut oil
• 1 cup coconut milk
• 1/2 cup cilantro (chopped)
• 1 Tsp salt

Note

Skip all the dry spice ingredients except garam masala  if using ready made curry powder.

Directions

	Heat oil, add onions and saute for 3 minutes. Add ginger garlic paste and saute for 1 minute.
	Add all the dry spices except garam masala and cook for 2 minutes. Add chopped tomatoes and cook about 3-4 minutes till the oil floats on top.
	Add salt and cleaned shrimp and simmer for about 10 minutes. Add coconut milk, garam masala and fresh cilantro, simmer for 1 minute and take off the fire.

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