By Jnanendra Das
What is it that makes Indian cuisine a unique gastronomic experience? Is it the explosion of flavours in your mouth or that you are hands down and knuckles deep in curries and delectable gravies with indigenous spices? There is no one correct answer to that, it is probably the fusion of traditions, a melting pot of flavours from various regions, languages, tribes and religions from centuries of cultural exchange across the globe.
Food brings people together, be it Alu Muri, the evergreen street food of Shillong or the Kashmiri Wazwan, where they feast
from the same plate; or the Attukal Pongala of Kerala where over 2.5 million women come together to cook, making it one of the largest annual gathering of women. Food has also sparked fights in this country, for example, the fight over the GI Tag for Roshogolla between Odisha and West Bengal.
Diversity can spark debates, in such situations, declaring any Indian food as the best can spark controversy. Bravely and somewhat rightly enough Chingri Malai curry has been selected among the 50 Best Seafood Dishes in the world by TasteAtlas, an encyclopaedia of flavours. This dish from West Bengal is the only one from India to make it to the list.
Chingri Malai Curry or Malaikari is an iconic Bengali prawn curry made by cooking large tiger prawns (bagda chingri) or giant freshwater prawns (golda chingri) in a super-subtle and creamy coconut-milk sauce. But why different names for the same dish? It is not a pronunciation error but rather the trade route it followed to enter the Bengali kitchens. If you follow the common recipes for this dish, you might wonder, contrary to the dish’s name, there is no malai (cream of milk) used.
Malaikari has its roots in Malaysia etymology. Malaikari entered Bengal through contacts with Malaysian sailors and traders, hence the name means ‘Malay’ curry or the curry from Malaysia. Over time, the name morphed into “malai” curry, though the dish itself typically contains no milk cream. Historical links between India and Malaysia date back over two millennia, between the 9th to 13th Centuries through the imperial advent of the Chola Empire of South India. (Source: Centre for South Asian Studies, Pondicherry University.) This underscores the deep cultural exchanges that shaped this dish.
Bengalis love this coconutty creamy delicacy, sometimes more than the potato in their mutton biryani. The balance of spices and sweetness makes it irresistible. It is more than just a meal, a staple dish at weddings or festivals like Pohela Boishakh(Bengali New Year), and the celebratory Sunday lunch. It’s best enjoyed with steamed rice, as you don’t want the taste of malai curry to be overpowered.
Don’t be fooled by the elegant appearance of this well-loved treat, looks can be deceiving to make the cooking look intimidating, but this recipe (credits: Bong Eats) might help:
Ingredients (Serves 6)
1 kg Bagda or Golda chingri (giant tiger or freshwater prawns)
50 g Vegetable oil
10 g Ghee
200 g Onion paste
20 g Ginger paste
4 g Turmeric
1 teaspoon (tsp) Kashmiri red chilli powder
75 g Yoghurt
6 pcs Green chillies
500 g Coconut milk
24 g Salt
36 g Sugar
½ tsp Garam masala
Method
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Shell and devein the prawns, leaving the flavourful head intact. Optionally remove the stomach of the prawn, located near its head.
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Coat prawns with 1 tsp salt and ½ tsp turmeric powder, and set aside.
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In a grinder jar, add onions and blitz them to a fine paste. Also, extract coconut milk, (or use store-bought).
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Heat vegetable oil in a pan. Once hot, lower the prawns one by one, and fry them in batches for about 45 seconds on each side. The longer you cook prawns the tougher they’ll become, so immediately remove them from the heat and set aside.
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Now add ghee to the residual oil. Temper with dried red chillies, bay leaf, cardamom, cloves, and cinnamon.
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Add onion paste with sugar, and fry for about 8 minutes until the onions are brown.
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Add ginger paste and fry for another 3–4 minutes, after which add turmeric and Kashmiri red chilli powder. Stir intermittently so that the spices don’t stick to the bottom of the pan. If needed, add a splash of diluted coconut milk to loosen the mixture up and help fry it. Also, add three slit green chillies and salt now.
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Once the oil separates from the spices, add lump-free beaten yoghurt. Drop the heat and stir vigorously to prevent the yoghurt from splitting. Cook it for 3–4 minutes.
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Add coconut milk and simmer for about 2 minutes. Once it comes to a boil, add the fried prawns.
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Allow the prawns to bubble in the curry, and cook covered for no more than 5 minutes.
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Finish off with garam masala before serving.
If this recipe waters your mouth but you don’t have the energy to head to the market and go through this entire process, just haggle your Bong friends into inviting you home for lunch.
TasteAtlas link: