Succulent prawns cooked in a coconut based gravy inspired by the bong style "chingri malai curry".
Wash and clean the Prawns throughly and marinate them in salt, turmeric and red chilli powder for 15-20 mins
While the prawns are marinating, in a grinding jar make a fine paste using the onion, garlic, ginger and green chilli together.
Heat a pan and add the oil. Once the oil is hot, Lightly seers the prawns on both sides. It should take around 1 minute to do so. Overcooking the prawns at this stage will make them tough and chewy.
After the prawns are lightly sautéed, take them out of the pan. In the same pan add 1bsp Ghee and let it melt. Add the whole spices and let them fry till they release their aroma
Add the onion, ginger-garlic and green chilli paste which was prepared earlier. Let the paste cook for a while such that the raw smell.
Add sugar to the masala and saute for few more minutes. Adding sugar will help in caramelising the onions. Add Kashmiri red chilli powder and turmeric powder and salt to taste. Cook the masala together for 1-2 minutes.
Whisk the yogurt till its smooth. Lower the flame and add the whisked yogurt into the pan, stirring continuously. If you add the yogurt on high flame...it will curdle and make the gravy full of lumps.
Let the gravy cook until it leaves the sides and you can see the oil on the sides of the pan. At this stage, add the coconut milk and let it simmer for 5 mins.
Once the gravy thickens, add the fried prawns and let them cook in the gravy for 3-5 minutes.
Add the Garam Masala and mix. Garnish with freshly chopped coriander leaves. Serve the piping hot Prawn Malai Curry with steamed rice or paratha as per your preference.