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Food Talk
Simple yet elegant, molai curry from the Bengal repertoire is easy to master
Prawns arguably are the most prized seafood in India. Lobster, crab, mussels and squid have their die-hard loyal patrons but, for most, remain much too exotic and expensive beyond reach. Those of us born and bred away from the seaboard are inclined to consider prawns-jhinga or chingrhi as synonymous with ‘fruits of the sea’. They come in different sizes: from tiny dried shrivelled shrimps to jumbo tiger prawns. These can be prepared and served as starters in dry form or with gravy as main course.
Once again, we are constantly reminded that to get the most out of this creature from the deep or the shallow, sharp spices should be avoided. Prawns have a delicate nutty flavour and shouldn’t be smothered with tomato-garlic-onion-ginger-chilli-turmeric-coriander, not to forget the garam masala pastes. We must confess that we have great weakness for prawn butter masala though the recipe eschews tomatoes and relies more on black pepper.
Batter-fried prawns in Chinese restaurants come in a translucent garb with an array of tempting sauces and the tandoori incarnation seems to please the Punjabi palate most but for us the seductions of no-frills chemeen are irresistible. There are simple yet elegant and deeply satisfying recipes like the chingri molai curry that are easy to master and joy forever. This is the recipe we share with our readers this time. The suffix molai we are told indicates some Malay connection; for us, it recalls the sublime creamy texture. The availability of deep-frozen, pre-cleaned and de-veined prawns in all sizes by a number of quality-conscious companies now makes it possible to enjoy molai curry from the Bengal repertoire at will.
Ingredients
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For those who shirk work, prawns as ingredients hold great temptation. They have to be cooked minimally — about two minutes — as overexposure to heat ruins the delicious succulence and can be draped in different gravies showing off the cook’s talent.
