Shrimp curry with cashew and poppy seeds - Restaurant Style

Shrimp / eral / prawn is a dish that was never in our kitchen menu as I was so worried about the cleaning process. Then I came across the washed and peeled off prawns from walmart as a gift from heaven. After having prepared this over and over again now I am even comfortable with the cleaning. I make prawns with cashew and poppy seeds. Poppy seeds are called 'kasa kasa' in tamil. Nothing can wrong with this recipe as the ingredients are very simple and I would suggest this to even beginners. 
Here goes the recipe.

Ingredients

Prawns 1lb / 500g cleaned and deveined.

Onion 1 medium chopped

Tomato1 medium chopped

Garlic 6-7 pods

Ginger 1_1/2 inch piece

Whole cashews 4-5

Poppy seeds 1 tsp (kasa kasa)

Fresh coconut 1 tblsp

Spices to temper:

Oil 1tsp

Cinnamon 1 inch

Cloves 2-3

Whole cardamom 1

Bay leaf 1

Mint 4-5 leaves

Spice powders :

Turmeric 1/2 tsp

Chilli powder 1/2 to 1 tsp

Corriander powder 1 tsp

Cumin powder 1/2 tsp

Chicken/mutton masala 1/2 tsp

Salt to taste

How to:

1) Grind ginger and garlic together. You can use 1 tsp ginger garlic paste instead. Soak the cashews and poppy seeds in 1 tblsp of water.

2) Marinade the prawn with half of ginger garlic paste, half of chilli powder, 1/2 tsp salt. Let it sit for atleast 20 minutes.

3) heat oil in a pan with medium flame and add spices to temper one by one.

4) After about 1 minute, add the remaining ginger garlic paste and onion. After 1 minute add tomato

5) After about 2 minutes, add the prawn and stir for 1 minute.

6) Add the remaining spice powders and add 1 cup water. Let the mix boil for 10 minutes. Add little water if needed.

7) Do not let it boil for long, else prawns get leathery. Prawns change color from translucent to solid white and orange once it is cooked.

8) Grind the soaked cashews, poppy seeds and coconut. Add 1 tblsp water if needed and add it to the dish.

9) Let it boil for 2 minutes. Add chopped corriander leaves if possible and switch off the flame.

Finished curry

The dish should be semi-gravy. Serve with rice or chapathi. The cashew and poppy seeds add a unique flavor to the prawns.

How to clean prawns:

Prawns are mostly covered with a leathery shell on top and have tails when you buy them from market. The shell is open at the bottom of the shrimp and hence can be easily peeled off. Beginners can simply cut off the tail portion. Hold the prawn in one hand and peel off the skin from the bottom and move upwards just like you open a pea pod. It usually comes in one piece. Peel off any leftover skin. Wash it in warm water and keep it aside. Repeat the same with the whole batch. Once you get used to this trying peeling the skin off the tail instead of chopping off the whole tail. Good luck :)

I am linking this to the Cook Christmas Party Food even hosted by +Nayna Kanabar