Hi everyone!
How is lockdown treating you? It’s been busier than usual for me, and I think mum would agree that it’s the same for her in Kannur. We’ve both been cooking a lot more, which is fun, but also having to clean and tidy up, not-so-fun, but in general it has been alright.
I think we’re all familiar with the anxieties of lockdown, so I won’t get into that here, but here are a few things that have been bringing me joy:
The birds that seem to have suddenly appeared from nowhere — the empty plot in front of my apartment has trees that are filled with loud, chatty parrots and its such a joy to watch. It’s even better in Kannur, where there’s far more varieties of birds around.
S and I moved some plastic foldable chairs into the verandah, and I’ve been spending my evenings there, reading.
My baby bougainvillea are in bloom and like mum mentioned the other day, the plants seem to be thriving these days.
My friend Suki sends me pictures of his lunch prep every day, and it makes me so happy. He blogs at Suki’s Kitchen and is an amazing cook — if you’re looking for traditional Andhra recipes, look no further.
I love seeing on Instagram how people are taking on projects in the kitchen they wouldn’t otherwise — baking bread, making their own kombucha, dumplings from scratch and so on.
But in between the elaborate cooking projects, it’s good to have a few quick, easy recipes that are filling and delicious. Mum’s prawn congee recipe is just that. Without further ado:
PRAWN CONGEE
Ingredients
1/4 cup rice ( we used Jeera)
1 cup water
1 cup broth (if you don’t have broth, use 2 cups water with a stock cube, if you have one)
250 g prawns, cleaned and deveined
3 cloves garlic
3 stems of coriander
6 peppercorns
2 tsp soy sauce
1 tbsp fish sauce
1 tbsp vegetable oil
Salt as needed
Handful of coriander leaves, chopped
Garlic oil
3 tbsp vegetable oil
6 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
Method
Add the rice, water and broth to a large pot and boil till the rice is cooked.
Meanwhile, using a mortar and pestle, grind the peppercorns, garlic and coriander stems to a paste.
Use half the paste to marinate the prawns.
In a small pan, heat the oil.
Sauté the prawns lightly, until they change colour. Set aside.
Next, make the garlic oil — add the oil and the garlic to the pan and on a low flame continue to fry until the garlic changes colour around the edges. Set aside.
When the rice is cooked, add the prawns, the fish sauce, soy sauce and the remaining paste. Cook for a few minutes, and check for adjust seasoning.
Serve the congee in individual bowls and top with the chopped coriander leaves and garlic oil.
Enjoy hot.