Prawn Varuthachathu

Name: Prawn Varuthachathu
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 16 min
Total time: 26 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Indian (Kerala)
Ingredients: 600g medium prawns, cleaned and deveined; 1 medium onion, thinly sliced; 4 tbsp ginger-garlic paste; 3 tbsp Kashmiri chili powder; 1 tbsp coriander powder; 1 tsp black pepper powder; 1/2 tsp turmeric powder; 1 tsp fennel powder; 8-10 curry leaves; 4 green chilies, slit; 4 tbsp coconut oil; Salt to taste; 2 tbsp lime juice

🍗 Non-veg🌾 Gluten-free📊 Medium

Traditional 73. Prawn Varuthachathu recipe

⏱️10 minPrep

🔥16 minCook

🕒26 minTotal

🍽️4Serves

🧺 Ingredients

👩‍🍳 How to make Prawn Varuthachathu

Marinate prawns (10 mins): Toss prawns with 2 tbsp ginger-garlic paste, 1/2 tbsp Kashmiri chili powder, 1/4 tsp turmeric, salt, and 1 tbsp lime juice. Let sit for 10 minutes.
Brown onions (3 mins, medium-high heat): Heat coconut oil, add sliced onion. Fry for 2-3 minutes until softened.
Build spice base (2 mins, medium heat): Add remaining ginger-garlic paste and cook for 1 minute. Add remaining Kashmiri chili powder, coriander powder, turmeric, fennel powder. Stir for 1 minute.
Caramelize (2 mins, medium-low heat): Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until prawns develop slightly charred spots and masala becomes dry. Do not overcook.
Finish (1 min, low heat): Turn off heat immediately. Drizzle remaining lime juice. Prawns should be completely dry-coated, no gravy.

📖 Cultural notes

Prawn Varuthachathu uses dry-roasting technique unique to Kerala, where delicate prawns develop complex caramelized flavors through careful, continuous motion and precise heat control. ---

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