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| Goan Samarachi Koddi |
Samarachi Koddi is another of Goa's seasonal specials, primarily consumed during the monsoon season when fresh seafood is not readily available. The use of fresh and dried shrimp, mango and freshly roasted ingredients give this curry a very unique flavour that will have you coming back for second and third helpings!
Sambhar powder is now readily available in Goa which reduces the time taken to prepare this dish, but I wanted to do a "from scratch" version for those folks that do not have access to the readymade powder.
I hope that you try and enjoy this dish as much as I do.
Ingredients:
2 cups dried shrimp
2 cups fresh shrimp (80 per pound size - cleaned and cut in half lengthwise)
1 onion (chopped fine)
3 or 4 dry mango skin (ambiachi solam)
3 or 4 raw mango slices (cut in 1 - 2 inch pieces)
salt to taste
oil for frying
Masala Ingredients (to roast and grind):
1 onion (chopped fine)
10 dry red chilies (I used Aldona chilies)
2 cups fresh grated coconut
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
8 - 10 peppercorn
2 tablespoon coriander seeds
1 inch cinnamon
5 cloves
1/2 star anise
1 - 2 pieces mace
1/4 nutmeg grated
4 garlic cloves (large)
1 inch ginger
1/2 teaspoon fenugreek (methi seeds)
1 inch tamarind (soak in 1/2 cup hot water to extract pulp)
Directions:
1. Prep your ingredients and spices before you begin to save time while cooking.
2. Salt the raw mango slices. Soak the tamarind and mango skin in hot water.
3. Individually dry roast all the dry spices in a hot pan. Do not let the spices darken or burn, or it will add a bitter note to the curry.
4. Dry roast the onions, ginger and garlic, coconut and the dried shrimp next.
5. Add a little oil to the pan and fry the fresh shrimp until they are partially cooked.
6. Grind the masala ingredients to a thick wet paste.
7. Saute 1 finely chopped onion in a large pot.
8. Once the onion starts to change colour, add the fresh mango slices to the pot. Fry for a few minutes.
9. Add the masala paste to the pot next and fry for a few more minutes. Once the masala starts to sputter, add a cup or two of water and bring it to a rolling boil.
10. Add the dried mango skin to the curry and let it cook for a few minutes.
11. The fresh shrimp go in next. Let them cook while the bringing the curry back to a boil. Add more water as required. You want to maintain a slightly watery texture at this point as it will thicken a bit after it's done cooking.
12. Add the dried shrimp to the curry at this time and let it cook for 5 - 10 minutes.
13. Taste for salt and then turn off the heat. Let the curry mature overnight. The flavours intensify the next day and adds to the overall experience of this dish.
14. Reheat and serve hot with steamed rice and your favourite pickle. I've used leftover raw mango, cut up into tiny pieces and mixed with some lime juice, chilli powder and some salt to taste.
Please feel free to reach out to me with feedback and/or suggestions at ddsouza@gmail.com
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Enjoy!
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