Prawns Hinga Randai Narlel Tela Ghalnu (Hummana)/ Prawn Curry with asafoetida and Raw Coconut Oil.

“Prawns Hinga Randai Narlel Tela Ghalnu (Hummana)/ Prawn Curry with asafoetida and Raw Coconut Oil" … traditional dishes are always a delight to relish on ... here is our own sungata randai from Konkani Saraswat Fish Cuisine for all of you out there who love prawns ... tastes awesome with boiled rice ... Yummilicious ...  

** Prawns is a fish that appeals the most to all fish eaters / lovers specially children. There are so many method of preparations that can be done with this versatile fish. Curries, fries, cutlets, biryani, pulav, you name it and the fish has its own long list. Prawns are the most sought after fish universally, and even in our house we simply love them. Unfortunately the rising price of the same curtails buying of this awesome fish many a times. Exporting of the large sized prawns has led to the price rise of this fish and we Indian are at the receiving end of the same. Large sized prawns really cost a bomb while the smaller sizes are easily available. 

** Dried prawns are also extensively used in preparation of many dishes and again there are many dishes that suit them the best. Addition of Asafoetida / Hing water along with coconut oil to the curry is one such curry that is the most famous among all. Panna upkari is another dish that is prepared with fresh prawns and dried prawns which is a delicious and very spicy curry. Dried prawns can be stored at home and remains good for over a year if they are really been dried well. I always store some for monsoon season as fresh fish is not available due to heavy rains etc. I have included many dishes before prepared using both fresh and dried prawns in my blog, so just use the search option for the same.

** Addition of sourness is very important to any curry specially fish curries. Konkani Saraswat’s Cuisine includes different addition of sourness in curries, like though most of the time tamarind is used while grinding of masala, one can add on hogplum (ambado), karmbala (Star Fruit), Tree Sorrel (Bimbul), Kokum, Raw Mangoes etc. any one of the mentioned items gives the tartness / tanginess / sourness to the curry which is very important and you can use them as per its availability as they are seasonal too except for tamarind and kokum which are actually stored for usage. 

** Here is the recipe for “Prawns Hinga Randai Narlel Tela Ghalnu (Hummana)/ Prawn Curry with asafoetida and Raw Coconut Oil" ….. 

** Skin and de-vein about 25 – 30 large sized fresh prawns. Wash in plenty of water and keep them ready aside. You can watch the cleaning procedure of fish properly from your fish vendor / relative or a friendly neighbor if you are a newbie as it is very important to remove to clean them properly without applying much of pressure. Close observation once is the best firsthand experience as you really get to learn it well.

** Masala to be ground : Add into a mixer grinder about 2 cups of freshly grated coconut along with 10-12 red kashmiri chillies and a small sized tamarind ball. Grind it to a very fine paste along with some water. If adding in any souring fruits like ambado, bimbul etc. leave out the tamrind. Do not add in more water and remember the ground paste should be very fine.

** Add the ground masala in a wide stainless steel vessel and bring to a boil. Add water to the masala if too thick to bring to a curry consistency. Once the curry has come to a proper boil, lower the heat to medium and add in the prawn pieces and let cook for 3-5 minutes. Add in a large tablespoon of prepared hing water and a tablespoon of coconut oil. Remove the curry and keep it covered aside for the curry to settle and the flavors to get infused. 

** Note : Once you have added the prawns do not cook for long time, the prawns if cooked for more time will get hardened. It does not take much time for any fish to get cooked. Hardly takes 5 minutes, so please be careful with timings. 

** Also do not stir the curry with a spatula once the fish is included to the curry, you gently need to hold the full vessel with both your hands with the help of a thick cloth duster and shake the vessel in rotation for the curry to swirl which help the mixing of curry in the vessel. Stirring with spatula breaks the fishes into pieces as they are very tender and cook fast. 

** “Prawns Hinga Randai Narlel Tela Ghalnu (Hummana)/ Prawn Curry with asafoetida and Raw Coconut Oil" is done and is ready to be served. This curry is best when served with rice though you may try out other options if you are not rice eater. But somehow, it is always relished with rice or boiled red rice in southern parts of India. You can try mildly spiced pulav if reluctant to use rice or maybe roti too. In my home it is always relished fresh and hot with rice.

** For Preparing of Hing / Asafoetida Water From Gummy Hing : Hing water is prepared by putting a small marble sized gummy hing (available in South Indian Stores) into a glass bottle and adding about a small cup of boiled and cooled water to it. Within a few hours the hing will slowly melt and you will get a thick whitish liquid. This is hing water. You can keep this in the fridge and use sparingly as and when needed. We GSB / Saraswat Konkani people usually prepare the same and keep it in the fridge always and use the same for dal, patrado or any other humman etc. 

** Note : You can also add hing / asafoetida powder if you do not have access to the gummy form of hing. If adding hing powder, heat the coconut oil and when hot add in a 1 large teaspoon of hing powder in it and then add it to the curry. I have added hing water which is always available in my home. You may choose any method.

** You can use the search option for "Prawns" where you will get many more dishes prepared using it. Do try out various types of dishes to relish with dosa / Idly / roti etc. or with dal-chawal too. Enjoy the dishes with your family and friends and do give me a feedback if possible. 

** An Earnest Request : There are many more recipes of similar type in the blog. For all my Recipes, use the search option or the label section in the Blog. If you are still not able to find it please leave a message in comment section or mail me the same. You can also go to my page (add on the left side of blog) and leave a message and I will try my best to get back to you as soon as possible … Thank you.