Chingri Charchari

Name: Chingri Charchari
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 35 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Indian (Westbengal)
Ingredients: Medium prawns: 300g, shelled; Potato: 150g, cut in thin strips; Pumpkin (kumro): 150g, cubed; Drumstick (shojne): 1, cut in 5cm pieces; Panchphoron (Bengali five-spice): 1 tsp; Dry red chilli: 2; Turmeric: 1 tsp; Green chillies: 3, slit; Mustard oil: 3 tbsp; Salt: 1 tsp; Charchari is intentionally semi-dry — it should not have gravy; Cut vegetables in similar-sized pieces for even cooking; Panchphoron (equal parts fenugreek, nigella, cumin, fennel, mustard seeds) can be bought pre-mixed; Serve as a side alongside dal and rice — or as the main with extra rice

🍗 Non-veg🌾 Gluten-free📊 Easy

Prawns stir-fried dry with seasonal vegetables in a bold, pungent panchphoron-and-mustard base — a semi-dry Bengali dinner of robust flavour.

⏱️15 minPrep

🔥20 minCook

🕒35 minTotal

🍽️4Serves

🧺 Ingredients

👩‍🍳 How to make Chingri Charchari

Toss prawns in ½ tsp turmeric; fry briefly in hot oil until pink.
Remove.
Add panchphoron and dry red chillies to oil; let splutter and darken slightly.
Add potato and pumpkin; stir-fry 5 min.
Add drumstick and green chillies; cook 5 more min until vegetables are tender-firm.
Add prawns back, remaining turmeric and salt; toss vigorously on medium-high heat until mixture is semi-dry and fragrant.
No water added — the vegetables release their own moisture.

📖 Cultural notes

|---|---|---|---|---| | 240 kcal | 18g | 18g | 11g | 4g | Charchari is the Bengali art of cooking multiple vegetables together in a single pan with minimal liquid — the name possibly derives from the sizzling "char char" sound of the dry-frying. It embodies Bengali rural cooking's waste-reducing philosophy where leftover vegetable scraps become dinner. Chingri Charchari elevates this with prawns and is served at casual family dinners throughout coastal West Bengal. ---

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