Crab curry

Use pots of white and brown crabmeat, or pick the meat from fresh crab for this tasty Sri Lankan crab curry. Tamarind adds a lovely sweet and sour note

Prep:30 mins
Cook:1 hrs 15 mins

Serves 4
Easy

Nutrition per serving

kcal 499
fat 38g
saturates 14g
carbs 14g
sugars 12g
fibre 7g
protein 23g
salt 1.1g

Ingredients

85ml oil
1 tsp fenugreek seeds
1 tsp mustard seeds
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2-3 green chillies, chopped
1 thumb-sized piece ginger, grated
10 curry leaves
2 onions, sliced
2 tsp chilli powder
1 ½ tsp turmeric
300ml fish stock
1½ tbsp coconut milk powder
2 tbsp tamarind pulp water
2 tomatoes, cut into chunks
10g fresh drumstick leaves (optional)
500g white crabmeat (use ready prepped or pick your own)
20g brown crabmeat (use ready prepped or pick your own)
cooked rice, to serve
115g frozen or fresh grated coconut
1 tbsp cumin seeds
1 tbsp peppercorns

Method

First, make the paste. Dry-roast the coconut, cumin seeds and peppercorns until golden, then pound using a pestle and mortar or blend to a smooth paste.
Heat the oil in a saucepan, add the fenugreek and mustard seeds and cook until they start to crackle. Add the garlic, green chilli, ginger, curry leaves and onion, sauté until golden, then add the chilli powder, turmeric and coconut paste. Cook for 10-15 mins, making sure the mixture doesn’t stick – add a splash of water if you need to. Add the fish stock and reduce until the mixture thickens a little.
Add the coconut milk powder, tamarind pulp and tomatoes and stir in the drumstick leaves, if using. Season with salt and cook for 10 mins. Check the seasoning, then add the mixed crabmeat and heat through, stirring gently. Serve with rice.