Friday, March 16, 2012

Phulkopi Chingri - Cauliflower Prawns




A group of friends were invited over dinner in our place, few days back. I cooked phulkopi chingri and murg himachali for the guests who, I heard, adore spicy dishes. Usually, I am unsparing when it comes to the use of oil and ghee in our regular meals. But when you invite people to your home, you ought to keep in mind their taste buds. On such rare occasions, I let go of my skimpiness with oil, esp. ghee. However, I am sure if my mother ever tastes the chicken dishes cooked by me, she might find them too dull and bland for at home in Kolkata, my mom cooks some awesome spicy chicken curries with a layer of ghee floating on the surface and taste wise, they are heavenly. But I often get into a sort of skirmish with my mother over her use of ghee in chicken dishes which I find excessive and she, a key ingredient to taste. 


Thankfully, these days taking my words in consideration, she uses less ghee when she cooks for me on my homecoming.



Ingredients:                                                  Cooking time: 25-30 minutes
ü  100 gm prawns
ü  1 cup of cauliflower (cut in florets of medium size)
ü  2 medium sized potatoes (diced in cubes and parboiled)
ü  1 tsp ginger paste
ü  1 tsp turmeric powder
ü  1 tsp red chilli powder
ü  1 tsp cumin powder
ü  5-6 green chillies (ground into paste)
ü  3 tbsp cashew nuts paste
ü  2 tbsp grated coconut
ü  2 tsp sugar
ü  1 tsp garam masala powder
ü  2 tsp ghee (optional)
ü  White oil for cooking
For Sauté:
ü  1 bay leaf
ü  1/2 tsp cumin seeds
Method:
1) Heat oil in a skillet and fry the prawns till they take on a golden reddish hue. Put them aside.
2) Now in a wok, heat oil and when oil becoming piping hot, toss in the ingredients for sauté and allow them to sputter.
3) Add cauliflower and the potatoes. Shallow fry them.
4) When both cauliflower and potatoes turn bright golden in color, add ginger paste, turmeric powder, red chilli powder, cumin powder, salt along with 2 tbsp of water. Sauté for couple of minutes.
5) Add sugar, cashew nuts paste, green chilli paste and grated coconut. Stir in to mix. Cook covered on medium heat for a while till the ingredients assimilate.
6) Now add the prawns along with the oil used in frying them. Cook for few minutes and when the gravy dries a bit, sprinkle garam masala and drizzle ghee on top. Mix in.
7) Serve hot with pilaf or plain rice.


 

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