Rich And Spicy Crab (Kurlo) Green Curry.

"Rich And Spicy Crab (Kurlo) Green Curry" ..... My very own concoction of spices, dry fruits, coconut and greens. A delicious spicy crab curry that can be relished with panpolo or parathas during winter …. Simply Bliss …… Yumz …..  

I had been wanting to prepare and share this curry for quite some time now. But somehow I could not get the filed recipe copy. How time flies one never knows. There was a time when I studiously used to write down recipes in old diaries and preserve them. In all I had about 5-6 diaries full of recipes. Overtime some off which are hardly eligible as I had written out in pencil too. Now with computers it is much easier to type out and save the file. Moreover, one search button and you are sorted. Those days I had to dig out the needed recipe and sometimes it would take me a good half an hour even though I had indexed them. Today’s generation is so lucky everything is almost available at finger tips. Now there are video’s of recipes which will give better understanding of the procedure. Also blogging is done in step by step method at times. Those days it was just one picture with recipe that too sometimes in black and white which never gave us the correct outcome of a particular dish. I cut out pages from Women's Era and Femina to collected them. I even hard bound them to thick books. But off course we not only survived, we excelled and enjoyed them too. We also shared them with relatives and friends proudly. Today people are hesitant to share the method and some even keep some ingredients as secret. It’s a complete rat race I guess or should I say selfishness. Well I do not belong there, as I strongly believe “Sharing is Caring” principle. So my recipes are all tried and tested in my small kitchen and I assure you of its Authenticity. You may however, always mail me queries if need be and I will be happily oblige the same.

Ingredients:

** Crabs : 10 medium sized, cleaned and cut into two as shown in picture. You can add the 

** Coconut : 2 cups Freshly grated.

Pudina Leaves : 1 cup (leaves only)

Coriander Leaves : 4-5 cup coarsely chopped leaves with tender stems.

** Onions : 2 medium sized peeled and chopped + 1 small sized finely chopped.

Garlic : 10 peeled and chopped + 4-5 finely chopped 

Green Chillies : 8-10 less spicy one’s cut to pieces

Curry leaves : 8-10 

Ginger : 1 inch pieces chopped

** Spices :

Coriander Seeds : 2 tblsp 

Jeera Seeds : 1 tblsp 

Fennel Seeds : 1 tsp

Shahjeera Seeds : ½ tsp

Pepper : 1 tsp

Cloves : 8-10

Cinnamon : 2 inch piece chopped

Jaivitri : little bit

Green Cardamom : 6-8

Cashew Nuts : 18-20 

Cus Cus : 2 tblsp 

** Almond Powder : 3 tblsp

Pista (Unsalted) : 25-30

** Oil : About ½ Cup + 1 tsp

** Salt to taste.

Wash the crabs in plenty of water and keep them read. The size of pieces or cuttings depend upon individual liking. Some cut it into half while some retain it fully. Some remove the larger claws and vice versa. The addition of shell crab into the curry is also as per individual liking. At times I do while sometime I do not. My mom never added them to curry. But I learnt from my friend that addition of a few of them into the curry imparts lovely flavour. So its entirely upto you. I added just 3 shells.

Heat ½ cup of oil, when hot add in garlic, ginger, curry leaves, green chillies and fry for 2-3 mins and then add in the chopped onion and further fry for about 5 minutes. 

Now add in the ingredients under the list of spices from coriander to cus cus one by one and continue frying till all are well fried and a little bit crispy. 

Finally add in the almond powder and pista and mix well. Immediately add in the coconut and mix well and fry for another 4-5 mins. Remove and allow to cool a little bit. 

Grinding of the Masala : Add all the fried ingredients into mixer grinder along with pudina and coriander leaves and grind to a smooth paste with about a cup of water. If necessary add in more water. The masala should be smooth in texture ie finely ground. It is good to use warm water while grinding to get a smooth textured paste. Remove and add the paste to the crabs in the vessel. Mix well and add in more water if necessary to bring to thick gravy consistency.

Tempering : In a small pan add in the remaining 1 tsp of oil, when hot add in the garlic and fry till slightly colour changes now add in the onions that are finely chopped and fry till brownish in colour. Remove and add it to the crab curry. 

Mix the tempering, the ground masala and mix well after adding in salt to taste too. Now put the vessel on medium heat and bring all to a boil. Keep mixing the curry to avoid getting burnt at the bottom. Lower the heat and let simmer for a good 7-10 minutes. Remove, cover and keep aside for some time before serving hot with any dish of your choice. 

You can serve the curry immediately but the curry tastes better if resting period of about 4-5 hours is given. When the curry rest for some hours the juice of the crab gets mixed in with the gravy and gives it a better taste. Also the curry thickens in resting period as cus cus and cashews are added to it which gives it the thickness and creaminess on settling properly. The choice however is yours. I served the curry with a bland / less spicy Vatana ~ Methi Pulav. However you can serve with roti / paratha too.