Shrimp Curry

This Shrimp Curry is the simplest seafood curry you can make under 30 mins using pantry staples. It’s full-flavored, creamy and is customizable to heat and spice preference. It goes well over rice, turmeric rice, quinoa, millets, couscous, noodles, spaghetti or with flatbreads and other kinds of bread.

What is Shrimp Curry

Shrimp Curry is a side dish from various Asian cuisines where fresh or frozen shrimp is cooked with onions, tomatoes, ground spices, herbs and sometimes coconut milk. My recipe uses a basic method adapted from South Indian cuisines.

A curry base is made by sauteing onions, ginger, garlic, tomatoes and spices. Later it is simmered with coconut milk to which shrimp is added and cooked briefly. Usually a sour ingredient like tamarind is added to bring a fruity and tart flavor to the shrimp curry. In the absence of tamarind you may use fresh lemon juice.

Ingredients & substitutes

• Shrimp – I use fresh shrimp or prawns. You may use frozen but thaw them and pat dry with kitchen papers to remove excess moisture. I use jumbo/large size, if you are using smaller size then cut down the cook time and be cautious while adding liquid.
• Spices like coriander powder, cumin powder, turmeric and red chili powder are used to provide heat, thickness and flavor to the curry. You may use curry powder instead of the individual spices. Strong spice blends like garam masala are usually not used in a dish like this. But if you want you may add a quarter tsp at the end.
• Fresh ginger & garlic provide pungent flavors to the curry.
• Fresh curry leaves bring in a magical aroma but you may omit them if you don’t have or use chopped coriander leaves to garnish.
• Coconut milk imparts a nutty flavor and creamy texture to the dish. Since this is a quick recipe I use canned coconut milk. When I’m cooking leisurely, I go one step ahead and extract the fresh milk from 1¼ cup of raw frozen coconut. (tips in recipe card notes below)

Photo Guide

How to make Shrimp Curry (Stepwise Photos)

Make the curry base

1. Heat 2 tablespoons oil (30 ml) in a pan and add 1 cup fine chopped onions (1 medium, 130 grams). Optionally If you have fresh curry leaves you may add 8 to 10 leaves.

2. Saute till golden, for 6 to 7 mins and add 1 teaspoon grated ginger and 1½ teaspoon pressed/grated garlic. (or alternately use 1½ tsps ginger garlic paste). Saute for 1 to 2 mins, until aromatic.

3. Stir in

• ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 to 2½ teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder (I use 2½, or use paprika for low heat)
• 1 tablespoon coriander powder (or 1 tbsp curry powder)
• ½ teaspoon cumin powder (omit to use curry powder)
• ¾ teaspoon sea salt (adjust to taste, cut down to use curry powder)

4. Deglaze with 3 tablespoons water and add 1 cup chopped tomatoes (2 medium, or ½ cup tomato puree).

5. Saute until they become mushy and break down.

6. Pour 400 ml/ 13.5 oz canned coconut milk (1⅔ cups, or use raw grated coconut, read notes in recipe card at the end of the post)

7. If you are using small shrimp or any frozen shrimp, you won’t need any extra liquid. But if you are using jumbo/large size fresh shrimp, stir in ½ cup stock/water with 1½ tablespoon tamarind paste/pulp (or 1 tsp concentrate). Pour it to the pan.

8. Bring to a gentle boil and simmer for 3 mins for the flavors to develop. Taste test to adjust the seasoning. I felt mine needed a bit of sweetener to balance the tamarind so I added a tsp of jaggery powder (optional).

Adding shrimp

9. Add 450 grams/ 1 pound cleaned & deveined shrimp. If you prefer remove the tails as well. (Start with 1½ pounds/ 680 grams of fresh shell-on shrimp, to get around 1 pound / 450 grams of deveined and shelled)

10. Cover and simmer until cooked through, for 4 to 8 mins depending on the size of the shrimp. If you are using frozen shrimp, cook uncovered to maintain the consistency. Frozen can let out too much liquid while they cook. When they take up a C shape, turn off. Overcooking can turn them chewy.

Squeeze lemon juice if you have not used tamarind and garnish with coriander leaves. Serve Shrimp coconut curry over brown rice, turmeric rice, cooked noodles, spaghetti or with flatbreads like naan, chapati or roti.

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