OMG…Can’t believe today is my 50th post :D. As drab as that sounds…it is my first milestone in my very fun journey of blogging. Today’s recipe has to be something that is close to my heart and taste buds :P.This definitely calls for a seafood recipe, and what better than Crab Curry or Peethala Iguru!!… Are you a seafood lover? Or like unique food rich in protein and healthy at the same time that will certainly spoil your tongue? This post is very suitable for the people who enjoy culinary taste of the sea
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This dish screams for you to scoop up all the Crab Meat you can manage to extract with the gravy to soak it up in a nice piece of bread or rice. The fact that this gravy has a basic masala formula similar to that of the chicken gravies I am used to, makes it easy to execute. Never ever forget that the crab flavour that oozes into the gravy makes all the difference in the world.
Grab nothing but a piece of cloth to wipe off any smudges and get rid of your cutlery to dig into this crab gravy that I love to cook with it’s shell on. The masala trapped in the shell is not worth loosing over any form of convenience in terms of cutlery. Things are bound to get messy and using your hands is a must for Crab Curry or Peethala Iguru. This is not for the fainthearted. So, go all Indian on this and enjoy it :).
To cook Crab Curry or Peethala Iguru you must be precise, if not, it can reduce the specific flavour that you actually wanted in the first place. First all the spices must be cooked until its flavours and aroma come out. After smelling good, then that’s when you put in the crab in the cooked spices and allow it to penetrate into the crab. Finally add garam masala and garnish with chopped coriander. Then Crab Curry or Peethala Iguru is ready to be served and eaten. How simple was that…isn’t it?
Off to the recipe for Crab Curry or Peethala Iguru!!
Step-by-Step process in making Crab Curry or Peethala Iguru:
- Thaw frozen pre-cut crab pieces.
- Soak them in cold water for about 5 minutes, drain & rinse; Repeat soak and rinse process one more time and set aside.
- Finely chop onion and green chillies.
- Dice tomato into small pieces.
- Grind ginger, garlic, cinnamon, cloves, poppy seeds and desiccated coconut in a blender to a fine paste.
- First powder them finely in a blender without adding water.
- Then use slightly hot water, soak for a min and grind to a fine paste. Soaking in hot water aids easy grinding of the poppy seeds.
- Heat oil in a pressure cooker over medium heat. Season with ingredients under “To Season” and stir for a min until you smell the aroma of the spices.
- To this add chopped onions, green chillies and sauté till they are slightly brown in colour.
- Add curry leaves and stir for a minute.
- Now add tomato pieces and sauté till it becomes mushy.
- Add the ground masala paste, red chilli powder, turmeric powder and required salt.
- Sauté until the raw smell goes off. This will take about 5 minutes.
- Add crab pieces and sauté for 2 minutes.
- Add some chopped coriander.
- Now add required water till the crab pieces immerse well. You can adjust salt and the consistency of the gravy to suit your requirement.
- Close the lid of the pressure cooker and cook for about 2 whistles and turn off the heat.
- Once the pressure subsides, open the lid of the pressure cooker.
- Finally sprinkle garam masala powder and garnish with coriander.
Serve with vegetable pulao, coconut milk rice, roti, paratha, idli, dosa, or just with plain rice accompanied with rasam.
Crab Curry or Peethala Iguru
Ingredients
- For the paste:
- 1 inch Ginger
- 6 garlic pods
- 1 cm cinnamon stick
- 4 Cloves
- 2 teaspoons poppy seeds
- 2 Tablespoons desiccated coconut
- ¼ cup hot water for grinding
- To season:
- 1 cm cinnamon stick
- 3 cloves
- 1 cardamom
- 1 bay leaf
- Other Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoons vegetable Oil
- 1 large Onion finely chopped
- 2 to 3 green Chilies finely chopped
- 1 large tomato finely chopped
- A sprig of Curry leaves
- 2 teaspoons of red chilli powder Adjust to suit your spice levels
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
- Required salt
- 1 kilogram Crab cleaned and pre-cut (Fresh or frozen (thawed))
- ½ cup finely chopped coriander divided
- ½ teaspoon garam masala powder
Instructions
- Grind ingredients under “For the Paste” in a blender to a fine paste using hot water.
- Heat oil in a pressure cooker over medium heat.
- Season with ingredients under “To season” and stir for a min till you smell the aroma of the spices.
- To this add chopped onions and green chillies.
- Sauté till they turn slightly brown in colour.
- Add curry leaves and stir for a minute..
- Now add tomato pieces and sauté till it becomes mushy.
- Add ground masala paste, red chilli powder, turmeric powder and salt.
- Mix well and sauté till the raw smell goes off.
- Add crab pieces and sauté for 2 minutes. Add some chopped coriander.
- Now add required water till the crab pieces immerse and add required salt.
- Adjust the consistency of the gravy to suit your requirement.
- Close the lid of the pressure cooker and cook for about 2 whistles and turn off the heat.
- Once the pressure subsides, open the lid of the pressure cooker.
- Finally sprinkle garam masala powder and garnish with remaining coriander.
- Serve with vegetable pulao, coconut milk rice, roti, paratha, idli, dosa, or just with plain rice accompanied with rasam.
Notes
This is a fiery curry, so if you prefer a milder flavour, reduce the chilli powder to taste.
Using hot water to grind the paste will aid the poppy seeds to grind easily.
Cooking in pressure cooker saves time.
You can also cook in a skillet over medium heat for 12 to 15 minutes and then simmer to low heat for 5 minutes. When the oil starts to separate, turn off the heat.
Crab or any seafood for that matter does not absorb a lot of salt or spices unlike other meat, so add salt or spices with care.
You can use ginger garlic paste in case you do not have fresh ginger and garlic and grind only the other ingredients for the paste, but definitely there is a difference in the taste.
You might also like other popular Non-Vegetarian dishes in my blog- Chicken fry, Fish curry, chicken curry, Egg in tomato gravy, Masala egg fry….and many more to come!!…Stay Tuned!!
Happy Cooking 🙂
Padma
