Curli Sukke / Crab Masala/ Crab Varuval

The crabs in the picture are not entirely cooked yet

Curli Sukke / Crab Masala/ Crab Varuval

This is a favorite in my family. I am a huge fan of this dish, but with prawns instead. It’s ridiculously tasty and goes well with steamed basmati rice or pitas.

Ingredients- Serves 2

Crabs – 2 →cleaned and cut in half with claws separated [ Just so the masala can infiltrate every possible area of the crab. The size of crabs in India are rather small so you may have to adjust the amount of masala]

Oil (vegetable) – 2tbsp

Onions (red) – 3 (American red onions – 1 would suffice. Indian onions are pretty small!)
Green Chilli peppers (Serrano) – 1
Fresh Coriander (Cilantro) – chopped, for garnish
Indian Red Chilli powder – ½ tsp
Turmeric Powder – ¼ tsp
Coriander powder – 1tsp
Tamarind paste ***– ½ tsp or you could substitute 1 roma tomato (this is to get tartness)
Salt – to taste

Directions:

1. In a shallow pan/pot add oil and let it heat up.
2. Add the chopped up onions, green chilli, and all the powders (chilli, turmeric, and coriander). Fry until you can see the oil separating out from the masala again.
3. Add the crabs, mix and then add 1-2tbsp water. Add salt (1/2 tsp).
4. Cover and cook on low.
5. Garnish with freshly chopped coriander (Cilantro) leaves.

*** - One can purhase this at any Indian/Asian store. You can also find whole tamarinds in Mexican/South American Markets. In this case you can remove them from their shells, and place them in very little warm water and let is soak for a few hours. Then squeeze as much essence as you can.

Enjoy!