Prawn Pepper Fry made with juicy prawns stir-fried with freshly ground pepper masala. This hot and spicy shrimp pepper fry is an easy prawn recipe from South Indian (Chettinad) cuisine that can be made within 30 minutes. Serve it as a side dish with dal and rice.
Juicy prawns are sweet to taste that get a spicy kick from the black pepper. The combination of pepper and prawn in this prawn masala fry is just amazing.
To experience the same you need to give this recipe a try. I can assure you that you will love the dish. Similar prawn recipes that you might like are our Prawn Ghee Roast, Prawn Rava Fry, and Prawn Sukka.
Table of Contents
Prawn Masala Fry
This recipe is from Chettinad cuisine, a popular cuisine from the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu known for its spicy foods. In Tamil Nadu, this dish is popularly known as “Eral Milagu Varuval” which means Prawn Pepper Fry.
The magic of this prawn masala fry comes from freshly ground black pepper, coriander seeds, cumin, and fennel. The aroma and flavor of these simple spices make this prawn masala amazing.
It is the heat from black peppers that makes the dish spicy. However, this pepper prawn masala recipe is not that spicy and you can always adjust the spice level as per your taste by increasing or decreasing the quantity of peppers.
You may also like these other popular prawn recipes from this website:
Why do you need this recipe?
- Quick and easy recipe – All the ingredients to make this shrimp pepper fry are easily available in the Indian kitchen pantry. It takes only 30 minutes to make this prawn masala fry.
- Healthy – Prawns are a good source of protein. They are rich in vitamin B12, low-calorie nutrition-rich food that helps in building muscles, a rich source of Selenium that prevents the growth of cancer cells, also have a high level of zinc that improves the immune system, etc. This dish is a stir-fried recipe not deep-fried. Overall, a healthy dinner recipe.
- One-Pot Dinner – Everything is made in a single pot. Fewer dishes to go and easy to clean up.
- Family-friendly dinner recipe – This recipe is not too spicy. Also, I have shared tips to adjust the spice level as per taste.
- Make ahead recipe – You can make it ahead of time. Let it cool down completely. Store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Stays good for 2 days.
- Gluten-free recipe
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Prawns – I have used fresh prawns for this recipe. You can use any size prawn. Substitute it with good-quality frozen prawns. If you are using frozen prawns then thaw them properly. Drain off the water. Pat it dry with kitchen tissue and then use it.
- Pepper masala – It is made with whole black peppercorns, coriander seeds, fennel, and cumin. If you have the above-mentioned whole spices in powdered form, add them. Adjust the quantity as per taste.
- Whole spices – Cloves, green cardamom, and cinnamon.
- Dried red chilies – Skip if you do not have them. You can substitute it with paprika.
- Onions – Basics of Indian cuisine. I have used 2 medium-sized red onions here. Traditionally, small red onions (Indian shallots) are used for making this recipe.
- Ginger-garlic paste – Substitute it with crushed fresh ginger-garlic or just add minced garlic.
- Curry leaves – This is the main flavor of any South Indian dish. Do not skip it.
- Flavoring – Garam masala powder, salt, turmeric powder, red chili powder, and lemon juice. You can substitute lemon juice with vinegar or tamarind. Skip red chili powder if you prefer less spicy or substitute it with paprika.
Cooking Tips
- Devein the prawns – It is important to devein the prawns, otherwise, it may cause digestive problems.
- Cleaning the prawns takes a lot of time. You can buy deshelled and deveined prawns to save time.
- Also, you can clean the prawns in advance. Deshell, devein and rinse it with water. Store it in the freezer in small batches. Stays good for 15 days.
- Marinating the prawns for 15 minutes helps them to remain soft and juicy after cooking. It absorbs all the flavors of the marinade and tastes delicious.
- Be careful while adding green cardamom to hot oil. Open it up a little, and then add it. Otherwise, it will pop up in hot oil and the hot oil may splash on you.
- Prawns get cooked quickly. So keep an eye on them. If overcooked they will taste hard or rubbery.
- Do not make this dish too spicy.
- You do not need all the pepper masala that we made. The masala makes the dish spicy. So, add the masala as per your taste. The quantity I mentioned in the recipe gives you a mildly spicy dish. Store the excess masala in an airtight container in the freezer. You can use this masala for chicken and meat dishes.
- Skip the addition of red chili powder or dried red chilies, if you prefer less spicy.
- This shrimp pepper fry should be consumed fresh. Reheating it can make shrimp dry and rubbery.
How to make Prawn Pepper Fry (Step-by-step instructions with photos)
Preparations
- Clean the prawn – deshell and devein it. Rinse it well with water. Drain off the excess water. Transfer it to a bowl.
- Marinate the prawns with ginger garlic paste, salt, turmeric powder, red chili powder, and lemon juice. Cover and set it aside for 15 minutes.
For Pepper Masala
- Roast black peppercorns, coriander, fennel, and cumin on low heat until aromatic. Remove it on a plate. Let it come to a room to room temperature. Grind to a fine powder. Pepper masala is ready. Set this aside. You can store this masala in an airtight container in the freezer. Stays good for a month.
Making Prawn Pepper Fry
- Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a pan over medium heat.
- Add the whole spices and sauté for 30 seconds.
- Add onions and sauté it for a minute or until translucent.
- Next, add curry leaves and ginger garlic paste. Saute it for a minute.
- Add the marinated prawns and combine. Stir and cook for 2-3 minutes. Cover and cook for a minute.
- Add 1 tsp of ground pepper masala and garam masala powder. Cook for a minute.
- Taste and adjust the seasoning. If required, add more salt or pepper masala.
- Finally, add lemon juice. Combine and remove from heat.
- Serve prawns masala fry with dal-rice.
Storage suggestion
- This shrimp pepper fry should be consumed fresh. Reheating can make the prawns or shrimp dry and rubbery.
- Not a freezer-friendly dish. When you will thaw prawns and reheat them, they will not taste good.
Serving Suggestion
- It tastes best when served with dal and rice (my favorite combination). Add a tsp of ghee on top of the prawn pepper fry.
- You can also serve it with rice and any curry you prefer.
Variations that you can try
- You can use the same masala to prepare Pepper Chicken. Only the cooking time will differ.
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Prawn Pepper Fry
Prawn Pepper Fry made with fresh prawns stir-fried with freshly ground pepper masala. This hot and spicy shrimp pepper fry is an easy prawn recipe from South Indian (Chettinad) cuisine that can be made within 30-minutes. Serve it as a side dish with dal and rice.
Servings 4 people
Equipment
- Deep bottom pan or a skillet
Ingredients
For marinating the prawns
- 250 gram prawns de-shelled and deveined
- 1 tsp ginger garlic paste
- Salt to taste
- 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
- 1 tsp red chili powder
- 2 tsp lemon juice
For pepper masala
- 1 tbsp black peppercorns
- 2 tsp coriander seeds
- 1 tsp fennel
- 1 tsp cumin
For prawn pepper fry
- 2 cloves
- 1 green cardamom
- 1 inch cinnamon
- 2 dried red chilies (optional) or use fresh green chilies
- 2 onions chopped
- Curry leaves
- 1 tsp ginger-garlic paste
- 1/2 tsp garam masala powder
Instructions
Preparations
- Clean the prawn – de-shell and devein it. Rinse it well with water. Drain off the excess water. Transfer it to a bowl.
- Marinate the prawns with ginger garlic paste, salt, turmeric powder, red chili powder and lemon juice. Cover and set it aside for 15 minutes.
For pepper masala
- Roast black peppercorns, coriander, fennel and cumin on low heat until aromatic. Remove it on a plate. Let it come to a room to room temperature. Grind to a fine powder. Pepper masala is ready. Set this aside. You can store this masala in an airtight container in the freezer. Stays good for a month.
Making prawn pepper fry
- Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a pan over medium heat.
- Add the whole spices and sauté for 30 seconds.
- Add onions and sauté it for a minute or until translucent.
- Next, add curry leaves and ginger garlic paste. Saute it for a minute.
- Add the marinated prawns and combine. Stir and cook for 2-3 minutes. Cover and cook for a minute.
- Add 1 tsp of ground pepper masala and garam masala powder. Cook for a minutes.
- Taste and adjust the seasoning. If required, add more salt or pepper masala.
- Finally add lemon juice. Combine and remove from heat.
- Serve pepper masala fry with dal-rice.
Video
Notes
- It is important to devein the prawns otherwise it may cause digestive problems.
- Cleaning the prawns takes a lot of time. You can buy de-shelled and de-veined prawns to save time.
- Also, you can clean the prawns in advance (de-shell and de-vein) and rinse them with water. Store it in the freezer in small batches. Stays good for 15 days.
- Marinating the prawns for 15 minutes helps to keep them soft and juicy after cooking them. It absorbs all the flavors of the marinade and tastes delicious.
- Be careful while adding green cardamom to hot oil. Open it a little and then add it. Otherwise, it will pop up in hot oil and the hot oil may splash on you.
- Prawns get cooked quickly. So, keep an eye on them. If overcooked they may taste hard or rubbery.
- Do not make this dish too spicy.
- You do not need all the pepper masala that we made. The masala makes the dish spicy. So, add the masala as per your taste. The quantity I mentioned in the recipe gives you a mildly spicy dish. Store the excess masala in an airtight container in the freezer. You can use this masala for chicken and meat dishes.
- Skip the addition of red chili powder or dried red chilies, if you prefer less spicy.
- This prawn masala should be consumed fresh. Reheating it can make prawns dry and rubbery.
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