Prawn Caldine | Prawn Curry With Coconut Milk (Goan Style)
Goan Caldine or Caldinho is a mild and delicious, yellow seafood curry made with few spices and coconut milk extract. Here's a step-by-step recipe to make Goan Prawn Caldine.
Servings 4 people
Ingredients
- 200 grams prawns, shelled, deveined and cleaned, marinated with little salt
- 275 grams dudhi (bottle gourd) or cauliflower florets/pumpkin cubes
For the masala paste
- 1 cup freshly grated coconut
- 1 tbsp coriander seeds
- 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
- 10 peppercorns
- 3 cloves
- 3/4 tsp turmeric powder
- 2-3 green chillies, or as per desired heat
- 1/4 inch ginger, peeled
- 5-6 garlic cloves
- 2.5 cups water
Other ingredients
- 3/4 cup finely chopped onions
- 1 cup finely chopped tomatoes
- 1-2 green chillies, slit lengthwise
- Salt, to taste
- Walnut sized ball of tamarind, soaked in about 1/4 cup of hot water for 10 minutes, strain and reserve the tamarind extract
Instructions
- Blend all the ingredients for the spice paste with 1 cup of water.
- Line a fine mesh sieve with a muslin cloth, transfer the ground paste to the cloth, and extract all the coconut milk. This is the thick coconut milk extract.
- Transfer all the leftovers to the blender, add 1.5 cups of water, blend again. Repeat the same procedure of extracting the coconut milk. This is the thin coconut milk extract.
- Heat oil in a heavy bottomed pan, add chopped onions, sauté until it turns translucent. You can add the slit green chillies at this point too.
- Add chopped tomatoes, sauté until it turns mushy.
- Then add the thin coconut extract along with a pinch of salt, mix well, followed by the tamarind extract. Bring to a boil.
- Add the bottle gourd cubes, and cook over medium heat until about 80 % done.
- Then add the shrimps, cook another 4-5 minutes or until it is cooked through.
- Add the thick coconut extract, swirl the pan gently. Simmer for another minute and switch off the heat. Do not cook it for a long time or else the coconut milk will curdle. Check for seasonings and adjust with salt if required. Serve hot with rice.
Notes
- You can also make caldine with vegetables only for a vegetarian version.
- Or use any firm, white fish such as pomfret or tilapia, for fish caldine.
- Measuring cup used, 1 Cup = 250 ml, 1 tsp = 5 ml