Tomatillos with Shrimp
Tomatillos with Shrimp
Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs tomatillos
- 1/4 cup oil
- 1 cup sliced onions
- 6 cloves garlic
- 1/2 tsp panch phoron (Indian 5 spice blend)
- 1/2 tsp salt divided
- 1/4 tsp turmeric
- 1/2 tsp red chili powder
- 1/2 tsp coriander powder
- 1/2 lb shrimp any size, cleaned and deveined
- 1 tsp sugar
- 3-4 green chilies
- Handful chopped cilantro
- 1/4 tsp black nigella seeds
- 1/2 tsp ground panch phoron powder
Instructions
- Wash the tomatillos well and cut into wedges about half inch thick.
- In a wide frying pan, heat oil and sauté onions, garlic cloves, and panch phoron for about 2 minutes. Add 1/4 tsp salt, turmeric, red chili powder, and coriander powder and cook covered until the onions are soft (3-4 minutes).
- Add tomatillos and sugar. Cover and cook 5 minutes.
- Add shrimp plus 1/4 tsp salt and stir gently. Continue cooking (uncovered now to dry it up) until shrimp is cooked through and tomatillos have softened.
- Finish with green chilies, cilantro, black nigella seeds, and ground panch phoron powder.
About Tomatillos with Shrimp
Tomatillos are part of the tomato family, originating in Mexico. It’s a common ingredient in many Mexican dishes, namely salsa verde. There are no traditional Bengali recipes with tomatillos as it’s not found in that part of the world, but you can bet the Bengali diaspora found a way to desi-fy it. This dish treats tomatillos as any other vegetable and cooks it Bengali bhaji style, using the spices we love. Experience taught me that it pairs really well with seafood, so I used tiger shrimp in this recipe. It also cooks very fast, so it’s a good option if you’re in a time crunch.
The Steps, in a Nutshell
As with many desi dishes, start off with sautéing onion and garlic, followed by some common spices, including panch phoron. Then add the sliced tomatillos, cook halfway, and add shrimp and sauté until both are cooked through. The finishing ingredients create the real magic here: green chilies, cilantro, black nigella seeds, and ground panch phoron powder.
What is Panch Phoron?
A prominent ingredient and flavor in this dish is panch phoron. Panch phoron is a spice blend of the following spices: fenugreek seed, nigella seed, cumin seed, black mustard seed, and fennel seed. It can easily be found in Indian groceries. In the first stage, whole panch phoron is toasted. At the end of the cooking process, the powder version of it is sprinkled on top. They both do their part in creating a nice aroma, but if I had to choose, I would definitely not skip the powder at the end! To make freshly ground panch phoron, simply dry toast whole panch phoron for no more than a minute until fragrant, then grind into a fine powder. This finishing touch is SO good, I’m telling you!
What Can I Serve Tomatillos with Shrimp With?
WHITE RICE! Nothing beats simple white rice with curry-style dishes. Although this is more like a stir-fry than a curry, it can still be enjoyed the same way.
And Finally…
If you try this dish, don’t forget to leave a star rating and comment below. And feel free to stop by my Instagram to say hello!