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05/22/2001 Archived Entry: "Mozambique Shrimp Curry, Julie Sahni's Curry Powder"

This is a recipe, actually a group of recipes, from my friend, the accomplished Indian cooking teacher, food writer and scholar (and fellow Brooklynite) Julie Sahni. She demonstrated it, along with a few other curry recipes, at the conference of the International Association of Culinary Professionals in Minneapolis last month. In my not humble opinion, the conference needs to feature more workshops like Julie’s, cooking demonstration sessions by experts in their field about the esoteric subjects they are studying themselves. Julie, already the author of several books on Indian cooking, and on cooking with spices, is writing a book whose working title is “Curries.” It is a vast subject, originating with but not at all confined to Julie’s Indian heritage, and a subject that is full of misconceptions and misunderstandings. To explain a very little, let me quote a piece that Julie wrote for the February 2001 issue of a scholarly journal called “The National Culinary Review:”

“The word curry has an interesting and complex history. Curry originated in India several thousand years ago. The word curry is derived from the southern Indian word kari, meaning a stir-frying technique, usually applied to vegetables. The word kari also refers to a an aromatic herb, called karipalai, which is used to flavor foods in the southern and western parts of India. Originally, the spice blend kari podi, or curry powder, contained only the kari leaf and a few spices, such as black pepper and ground gram beans, known as urad dal. In time, the spice blend evolved to include several additional spices and developed into a deeply complex and rich seasoning. The spread of the Hindu and Buddhist religions took the curry eastward into Southeast Asia – to Indonesia, Malaysia, Burma (now Myanmar), Thailand, Cambodia, and beyond. Each country and culture adopted and adapted curries to their own tastes and culinary styles.

“Curry came to England via the merchants of the East India Company, who acquired a fondness for the Indian cuisine. Returning home, they took a blend of spices known as curry podi (powder) to flavor food. Unaware of Indian cooking methods, their cooks simple sprinkled the powder into stews, creating the that slightly peppery, Anglicized dish called “curry.”

The dissemination of curry continues today as Indians emigrate to countries all over the world and people who are not Indian adopt and adapt curry seasoning and techniques to their own needs and likes. In addition, Indians themselves change their curries to incorporate ingredients from their adopted countries. There are African curries, South American curries, West Indian (Trinidadian, Jamaican, etc.) curries. Everyone loves curry in some form or other. Julie’s book, to be published in the fall of 2002, will trace the travels of all these different curries and, of course, present the many different recipes.

The following recipe is a shrimp curry from Mozambique that also includes a chili sauce that Africans call peri peri or peli peli. As should be clear by now, curry powders vary, so the main recipe here is followed not only by the recipe for the peri peri, but for one of Julie Sahni’s curry powder formulas. Once made, it will encourage you to make curry more often and, in any case, should keep nicely for several months in an air-tight container stored in a reasonably cool, dark place.

Julie Sahni has written many invaluable books on Indian cuisine, among them Classic Indian Cooking, Classic Indian Vegetarian and Grain Cooking, and Julie Sahni’s Introduction to Indian Cooking , which is available in paperback.

Julie also teaches Indian cooking in her apartment in Brooklyn Heights and conducts culinary tours of India. Her weekday, full-participation classes are held twice a month on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. They are limited to three people a class and cost $1,795. Two-day weekend classes are also available for $1,195. As costly as the classes seem, they attract students from as far away as Europe and Japan and – warning -- there is a long waiting list for the few spaces. If interested, call Julie at (718) 625-3958.


Mozambique Fiery Shrimp Curry
(Peri Peri Kari)

Serves 4

1 1/2 pounds large shrimp, deveined and peeled with the tail left on
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 tablespoon lemon juice
3 tablespoons unsalted butter or peanut oil
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 small (3 ounce) red onion, peeled and minced
2 teaspoons peri-peri paste (see recipe below) or 2 teaspoons minced fresh, green chilies with seeds
2 medium-sized ripe tomatoes, minced or pureed with skin
1 teaspoon lemon thyme, or 1/2 teaspoon thyme plus 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
2 teaspoons paprika
1/2 cup chicken broth or water
Coarse salt to taste

In a bowl, toss the shrimp with curry powder and lemon juice and set aside.

Heat 1 tablespoon of the butter in a large saute pan over high heat until hot. Add the garlic and the shrimp, toss and stir until they turn pink and cut up, about 2 minutes. Remove the shrimp into a bowl.

Add the remaining butter to the pan along with the onions. Reduce the heat to medium-high and cook, stirring, until the onions are soft and begin to brown, about 4 minutes. Stir in the peri-peri paste, tomatoes, lemon thyme, parsley, paprika and the broth. Cook until the tomatoes are soft and the sauce has thickened, about 3 minutes.

Return the shrimp to the sauce and cook until the contents are heated through. Check the seasoning and add salt to taste.

Serve over plain cooked rice.


Indian-style Peri Peri Sauce

Makes 1/3 cup

1/2 cup sliced fresh hot red (or green) chilies, about 10, 5-inch long chilies
2 teaspoons tomato paste or 4 teaspoons tomato puree
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 teaspoon ground cumin or cumin seeds

Combine all the ingredients in a blender or a food processor and process until the chilies are finely minced to a paste. If you are using the cumin seeds, it will not be completely ground which is perfectly acceptable.


Julie Sahni’s Homemade Curry Powder

Makes 1 cup

2/3 cup coriander seeds
1 1/2 tablespoons cumin seeds
1 tablespoon yellow mustard seeds
1 tablespoon fenugreek seeds
1 tablespoon white peppercorns
24 whole green cardamom pods, about 1 tablespoon
5 dried, whole red chilies, broken into bits
1 3-inch cinnamon stick, broken into bits
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon whole cloves
1 teaspoon celery seeds or dill seeds
2 tablespoons turmeric
1 tablespoon paprika
32 dried kari leaves or mint leaves
2 teaspoons ground ginger powder
1 teaspoon ground mace or grated nutmeg
1-9 teaspoons cayenne

Combine coriander, cumin, mustard, fenugreek, peppercorn, cardamom, chili, cinnamon, fennel, clove, and celery seeds in an unseasoned frying pan. Roast the spices over medium-high heat, stirring, until they are lightly colored, about 5 minutes.

Remove and cool spice-mixture before grinding into a powder in a coffee grinder. Transfer the curry powder into a jar, cover tightly and store in a cool dark place.