Recipe: Prema's Kurlyanche Sukkhe - Crab Fry

Sorry for not posting for over a month. I've just been busy travelling and hosting dinners at home. so more cooking and eating than blogging. The good news is that I did manage to take pictures of a lot of the stuff that I cooked, so I should be able to upload them all shortly.

This recipe was given to me by my friend Prema when I was looking for a fast way to make a dry crab dish (grinding - that is a pre-requisite for most Manglorean dishes - is optional)



So while you could grind the ingredients for the original Manglorean recipe, using chopped ingredients and powders works just as well (I finally succumbed and ground the stuff)

About 1/2 kg crabs .
Spinkle-1/2tsp salt and keep aside till you get the masala ready. (Kim's note: I normally add turmeric powder, salt and vinegar to sea food after washing and while getting the masala ready)

I grind (you can use powders/paste)
1tsp peppercorns,
1/2 tsp Cumin seeds - jeera
1 inch Ginger
4 cloves Garlic
1 inch - cinnamon stick
2 cloves.

Heat a little ghee.
Saute 1 chopped onion till translucent.
Add the ground masala and fry a little.
Add 1 chopped tomato & fry.


Wash the crabs lightly and then add to the pan.



Add a little water and cover and cook for about 10 min.

Voila done!

When crabs were cooked in large quantities at home, I remember my uncles stripping to their baniyans/vests, covering the dining table with newspaper and then proceeding to feast on just crabs. The crabs were the one and only course that they wanted to eat.

This dish however can be served with puris, rotis, or rice and dhal. Its flavours are strong, so compliment it with milder flavours, rather than have it compete with another strongly spiced dish.

Some of the other suggestions I was given for a dry fried crab dish are given below.
They were all good and I want to preserve them here to try at a later date.

Shilme had 2 options:
1. Salt + turmeric = deep fry or
2. Garlic, onion, chilli powder, tomato sauce, salt, sugar = stir fry.

Mohua suggested:
garlic and salt, whole pepper (loads ) and crabs...in butter......yummm...!!!

Zulekha suggested:
red chilli pwd +garlic +vinegar.cooked together,then shallow fry in oil