Friday, January 14, 2022

Spicy Kerala Shrimp Moilee For A Chilly January Night ...Now With Parathas!

We're having a cold winter up here in Northern California. We've been chilled frozen, dunked in the Atmospheric River and the Sierra has been buried in snow. We're happy for the water, and like happy doesn't even begin to cover it, but keeping warm both outside and in is important. Stews, soups and all manner of hot spicy fair, this is your moment to shine. This is the moment for a nice Kerala moilee.

 What is a molee or moilee? It's a type of creamy (coconut milk) spicy,  curry from the southern coast of India. It's usually made from fish, though there are veg versions too, which I'll be sharing soon. Molee can be mild or super spicy. Your hand's on the chili and it's up to you, cowboy.

So if you can get your mitts on some shrimp, a can of coconut milk, and some basic spices such as cloves, and turmeric, you can make this bad boy tonight while you're enjoying Peacemaker, or the Madalorian, (which reminds me of a great Magalorian recipe ) anyway, this is a very quick, and simple dish to make no matter how you spell molee.

Shrimp Molee

Here's What You Need:

1 Tbs vegetable oil (i use coconut oil)

1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced

3 shallots or 3 cloves of garlic crushed (just peel and flatten with a large heavy knife)

2 serrano chilies finely chopped

2 tsp ground turmeric 

1 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp ground cumin

4 whole cloves

1 and 2/3 cup of coconut milk (best with full fat)

*6 curry leaves (if you have them, otherwise there is really no substitute so leave them out)

1/2 tsp salt

1 and 1/4 lb of shrimp cleaned, and shelled

1 tbs chopped fresh cilantro

Here's What To Do:

Heat the oil in a kadhai or deep frying pan.

When the oil is hot add in the onion and cook for about 5 minutes.

Add the garlic or shallots, and cook for another 5 minutes until the onion has softened and turned translucent.

Now add in the turmeric, cumin, coriander, and cloves.

Stir fry everything for about 2 minutes.

Now add in the curry leaves if you have them.

Add the coconut milk and salt and bring everything to just below the boiling point.

Then turn down the heat, and simmer for 20 minutes.

After the sauce has simmered for 20 minutes, add in your  shelled, and cleaned shrimp.

Bring the heat back up to simmer and cook for 5 minutes, until your shrimp are pink and cooked through.

Check your seasoning, add more salt if you need it.

Sprinkle the dish with chopped cilantro and serve it up.

I served it in a bowl along with parathas for lunch. It's also great over rice.

Feel free to play with the heat. If you find it's too spicy for you just add a bit  more coconut milk to mellow it But always start with less chili if you're worried about heat. It's always easy to add more if you want it.

So there you go. This is a perfect gateway dinner on a Friday night to kick off a relaxing weekend.

*As to the curry leaves;

I order mine online. They arrive fresh and I just bag 'em and tuck them into the freezer.

I order Ajika Brand, or Rani Brand. Very easy to find and order online.

And as for the Parathas:

 Here's my recipe for Mint Parathas, which kept me sane during a very difficult time.

 Coming up next an Indian dessert to go with,  Follow along on Twitter @kathygori

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