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Kerala prawn pickle

Kerala Prawn Pickle

Abhipriya Raghav
A spicy Kerala style prawn pickle recipe with a hint of flavor from coconut oil!
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Course Pickle, Side Dish
Cuisine Indian
Servings 2 cups

Ingredients
  

To marinate the prawn

  • 250 grams prawns, peeled, de-viened and cleaned
  • 1 tsp turmeric powder
  • 1 tbsp red chili powder
  • 1.5 tsp salt

To fry the prawns

  • 1/4 cup coconut oil
  • handful of curry leaves, chopped

To prepare the pickle

  • 1/2 cup sesame oil / gingelly oil
  • 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
  • 5 tbsp crushed ginger-garlic-green chili
  • 5 green chilies, slit
  • handful of curry leaves, chopped
  • 2 tbsp red chili powder
  • 1/4 cup vinegar
  • salt, if and as required

Instructions
 

Marinating the prawn

  • Clean the prawns and marinate them with the ingredients mentioned under 'To marinate the prawn'.
    Kerala prawn pickle
  • Mix all the spices well with the prawn pieces and set it aside to marinate for 30 minutes.
    Kerala prawn pickle

Frying the prawns

  • Heat coconut oil in a kadai on medium heat.
    Kerala prawn pickle
  • Fry the prawns with some chopped curry leaves until they are cooked (for a maximum of 2-3 minutes). Drain the prawns onto a plate and set aside.
    Kerala prawn pickle

Preparing the pickle

  • In the same kadai, add sesame oil and let it heat.
    Kerala prawn pickle
  • Add the crushed ginger-garlic-green chili and fry them until the raw smell disappears.
    Kerala prawn pickle
  • Add the slit green chilies and saute them.
    Kerala prawn pickle
  • Add the curry leaves and mix well. At this stage, add the required salt too.
    Kerala prawn pickle
  • Add the red chili powder and cook for less than a minute.
    Kerala prawn pickle
  • To this mixture, add the fried prawns and mix well.
    Kerala prawn pickle
  • Add vinegar and cook until oil separates and the mixture becomes dry.
    Kerala prawn pickle
  • Serve it as a side dish either warm or at room temperature.
    Kerala prawn pickle

Notes

  • If you are using large prawns, cut them into smaller pieces before marinating. 
  • If you want big and chunky pieces of prawn in your pickle then avoid the earlier note.
  • Frying the prawns in coconut oil will give it the authentic taste of Kerala. You can fry them in any oil you want.
  • Do not fry the prawns for more than 3 minutes as they turn rubber-like if cooked longer.
  • Instead of using crushed ginger-garlic-green chili, you can use either the paste of even chopped ginger, garlic and green chili.
  • Do not let the ginger-garlic-green chili burn.
  • Adding salt while preparing the pickle is if and as required. Keep in mind that you have already added around 1.5 tsp salt while marinating the prawn.
  • While adding the red chili powder, do not let it burn. fry it in the oil for less than a minute.
  • Add red chili powder as per your taste
  • From 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup of vinegar can be added to preserve.
  • The pickle can be stored in clean glass jars at room temperature or in the refrigerator for upto a month.
Keyword achaar, indian, kerala food, pickle, prawn, prawn pickle, south Indian