Autumn reawakens the senses. Mornings feel fresher, colours appear bolder and flavours get a little deeper. As the colder weather moves in I tend to look for simple, classic food and I definitely like to start spicing up my recipes a little. The tuth is I love the smell of the gently toasted spices and the way they can fill the kitchen with the most amazing aromas. The sheer variety of flavours that they have to offer and can bring to a dish is endless, but seasoning with herbs and spices means complimenting your dishes, not overwhelming and hiding the true flavour of the food.
Using fresh spices is a much better option than buying in ready prepared spice mixes and they also make great little gifts for your friends and family. Always buy spices whole, not ground. Spices contain essential oils that are released when lightly toasted and ground and that is where all the aromas and flavours actually come from. When ground they do detoriate quickly and lose a lot of their magical qualities so my advice is to make your spice mixes often and in small quantities as a little goes a long way. Making spice mixes is great fun. You can travel all around the world with different combinations from India, Morroco and Mexico or you can be really inventive and create your own personal spice mix.
This months recipe is a malabar prawn curry. The curry spice mix also works really well with chicken and beef.
Malabar Prawn curry
Cooking time: 30 mins
Prep time: 25 mins
Ingredients serves 4
600g large raw tiger prawns, peeled
4 large tomatoes, roughly chopped
3tbsp olive oil
1 small green chilli, finely chopped
2 onions, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, crushed
5cm piece fresh root ginger, peeled and grated
200ml coconut cream
200ml coconut milk
Juice of one lemon
1tbsp palm sugar (or soft brown sugar)
50ml tamarind puree
Malabar spice mix
1/2tsp black mustard seeds
12 dried curry leaves
½ tsp chilli powder
1/2 tsp turmeric
½ tsp coriander seeds
¼ teaspoon fenugreek seeds
12 fresh or dried curry leaves
Add all the ingredients to the spice grinder and pulse until coarsely crushed.
Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan or wok, and then add the onions, chilli, ginger and garlic. Cook over a gentle heat for 2-3 minutes, and then add the Malabar spice mix. Cook the spices for a minute or two and add the tomatoes, coconut cream and milk. Bring to the boil and then simmer for 15 minutes. Add the lemon juice, tamarind puree, palm sugar and a pinch of salt. Blend the sauce with a hand blender and add the prawns. Cook for 2-3minutes and serve immediately. Garnish with fresh coriander sprigs and serve with steamed rice.
Recipe by Marc Fosh – Michelin Star Chef
