Goan Shrimp Curry is a well-known delicacy and if you have visited Goa in the past, you will have had this curry most probably while enjoying the sunset in a beach shack.
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The quick and easy Goan Shrimp Curry can be prepared in less than 25 minutes from scratch with fresh ingredients and the basic Goan curry paste.
Curries from Goa have a notorious good name in India and abroad. That is for a good reason because due to the cultural and historical influences of the past, the curries tend to have a little special zing to them.
The Goan shrimp curry is one of those favorite Goan eats, prepared with fresh shrimp and the basic
Goan curries are traditionally prepared with grated fresh coconut. Coconuts are a fundamental food ingredient in the Goan cuisine, it wouldn't be a Goan dish without coconut.
(Find more Goan coconut recipes at the end of the post)
The smallest state of India is situated in the right spot, to the west coast touching the Arabian see, the Indian Ocean.
Therefore, fish dominates the food culture.
What would a Goan be without his Bangde (Mackerel in local language Konkani)?
Shrimps, better known as Sungta in
It is a common custom in Asia to dry shrimps and use them in salads, curries and so on.
In
The technique of drying fish and shrimp involves a few things.
The seafood is cleaned, salted, and kept to dry in the hot Asian sun.
The purpose of drying is to have fish, although dried, in the rainy season.
The Indian monsoon is harsh and the weather is too dangerous for the fishermen.
In June/July the government imposes a fishing ban to allow the fish populace to recover.
So, fish becomes a commodity, and the rates for fresh fish rise.
So, at the same moment, we enjoy the precious fresh seafood of the sea right now and celebrate it today with this Goan Shrimp Curry.
The shrimp Curry was prepared with fresh shrimp bought from the Chapora harbor in North Goa.
I got a kilo of tiger shrimps for about 600 INR (9$ or 8,5€).
It was a mixed bag with red and black tiger shrimps, the boat had just docked at the small Chapora harbor.
People come there and directly buy the fish for restaurants, hotels, or simply for private use.
Tip: You can use smaller shrimps too for this recipe because tiger shrimps tend to be a bit more pricey.
The advantage of getting fresh shrimps is obviously fresh flavors.
However, you will spend some time cleaning the shrimps because you will need to remove the shell, the head, and the inside.
The insides of shrimps must be removed to avoid health issues.
Clean and devein your shrimps.
You can use frozen shrimps for this Goan shrimp curry.
I usually buy a kilo, clean it all and then freeze whatever I want to use for another time.
You can buy store frozen shrimps too, however, they don't come with the heads and in this Goan shrimp curry, you have the option of adding shrimp heads to intensive the curry flavor.
Adding shrimp heads to the curry deepens the flavors and turns it into an aromatic feast.
I like to do it, you don't have to, you have the option, it's just a great cooking "insider" tip!
More Shrimp Curry Ideas
- Quick shrimp curry with coconut milk (Asian inspired)
- Thai red shrimp curry
Dear reader, do you enjoy seafood?
📖 Recipe
Goan Shrimp Curry Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoon Olive Oil
- 1 Onion sliced
- 1 Tomato diced
- 1 Green Chili Pepper slit lengthwise
- 5 Piece Okra cut into chunks
- 12 Large Shrimp aka Prawns
- 1 Tablespoon Tomato Sauce
- 1 ½ Cup Goan Curry Paste
- 3 ½ Cup Stock *see Notes
- Salt to taste
- 6 Curry Leaves
Instructions
- Add and heat the oil in the pan, throw in the slit green chili and curry leaves. Stir fry for a minute or two, so to release the aroma. Fry the onion slices until they turn a bit golden.
- Then add the tomato dices and fry for 1 minute and after that add in the Okra pieces and stir fry for another minute.
- Now you can add your clean shrimps to the pan. Stir fry and cook for 2 minutes. Optional: add in the shrimp heads for extra flavor.
- Then pour in the vegetable stock or water, season with salt and mix well. Cover and cook for 18 minutes. Stir occasional. If you have added shrimp heads for flavor, take out the shrimp heads and discard after the curry finished cooking.
- Serve hot with rice and a bhaji of your choice. A small amount of pickle would go well with the curry, such as Green Mango Pickle.
Notes
- Adding the shrimp heads is optional because they give great flavor to the curry but if you are relying on frozen shrimp packets, you won't have shrimp heads.
- I recommend adding a seafood stock such as lobster stock for flavor.
How much tomato paste? It isn't in the list of ingredients.
Also, after adding the shrimp, will cooking for 18 minutes make them too rubbery? is it cooking on low or high heat?
Would love to make this
Hi Sandra, thanks for pointing that out, it looks like the tomato sauce was taken out in a recent update. I fixed that in the recipe card, it's 1 tbsp tomato sauce. The shrimp won't turn out rubbery, if you use good quality sea shrimp (not the farmed ones) and if you use it over a lower heat setting. Generally speaking, curries should be simmered at all times because the heat will otherwise curdle the coconut. Here is the Goan coconut curry paste that you will need to make this (as mentioned in the recipe card) There is a video to the recipe which pops up when you scroll down.
Has anyone out there actually made this? I'd like to hear from actual cooks out there. Thanks.
OMG that looks delicious!! I wish I were better at cooking so I could make that!
Oh but you can make this curry. Just follow the video step by step. Best is to open a bottle of beer and enjoy it while cooking and you ll get into the cooking mojo. 😉
The goan prawn curry looks delicious.. It looks just typical like our south style..Even i tried crab curry with south touch..Please check my blog 🙂
WE are a big fan of curry! Especially options we can make from home and this looks like a fab new recipe for us to try!
While reading I was making a list of the things that could go well with this!! It's so tasty!! I am drooling
Thanks for sharing how to make this curry, because if it wasn't clearly laid out I don't think I would even try! I love how your recipe and photos are beautifully laid out. Looks like a lot of hard work went into this post! Thanks for sharing!
I love anything with prawns in it and curry is SO good! I have got to try this recipe.
This is a great recipe. I have always wanted to learn how to make curry. I know there is a ton of spices I just didn't know about. Thanks for the recipe.
I love curries so I will definitely need to try this one out!
This looks so good! I love curry but have never been successful at making it before, I am going to have to try this recipe!
I've learned to love curry meal thanks to me expat friends. I bet the aroma of these meal are so divine! Yummy!
Glad I came over this post. Now I have another recipe to try on the coming days. Hopefully I can cook it successfully. Wish me luck!
Happy cooking! 🙂
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I'm learning to use coconut in more things. This looks really yummy. I would like to give it a good try.
This looks like a recipe I NEED to try out! I do the quick version and use the store-bought Thai paste with coconut milk!
This is a recipe I would love to try, I'm not familiar with Prawn but I would try it with some other protein. It looks delicious. Thank you for such a detailed walkthrough of the recipe.
This looks absolutely delish! And, it seem simple enough for me to make without any blunders.
That looks delicious! I NEED to try this in the future! thanks for sharing
This meal looks delicious. My family loves recipes with curry in them. Thanks for sharing this tutorial.
While I like curry, I do not like seafood. I've never had a taste for it, but my husband and kids love it!
Helene - I love the video! This Goan Prawn Curry sounds so scrumptious and reminds me alot of Sri Lankan prawn curry.
Love that you used okra in this curry, it's such a great vegetable and not used enough!
I'm rather partial to a good curry and this one looks not just good but great!Love that there is loads of sauce too
I don't often eat prawns but I love the flavours in Goan curries and this one sounds so tasty! It's making me hungry for lunch!
Oh I could so eat that for lunch today. Prawns do cost quite a lot - I got a very small bag of frozen, shelled tiger prawns for £4.50 yesterday which was pretty much the cheapest I've been able to find. Worth it though to have this delicious curry! Great video to show the steps 😀
The curry gravy looks so GOOD!