Indian Curry Coconut Shrimp with Chili Mango Sauce
The amounts listed below are fluid – if you run out of your dredge before you’ve coated all of your shrimp, simply add a bit more and continue with the process until you’ve used up all of the shrimp that you plan to cook.
- Yield: about 4 servings
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 lb. large raw shrimp, peeled and deveined (tails on)
- Salt and pepper, as needed
- ⅔ cup corn starch (give or take; you might not use it all, or you might need more)
- 2 TBSP Indian red curry paste (in the international cooking aisle, such as Patak’s)
- 2 TBSP cream of coconut (found in the cocktails/mixers section of most stores)
- 1 TBSP water
- ¾ cup panko breadcrumbs
- ¾ cup sweetened flaked coconut
- Vegetable, grapeseed or canola oil, for cooking
For the sauce
⅓ cup sweet chili sauce
⅓ cup mango chutney
Instructions
- Pat the shrimp dry and season them with salt and pepper.
- Put the corn starch in a bowl. Combine the curry paste, cream of coconut, and about 1 TBSP water in a bowl; stir to combine. In a third bowl, combine the panko and coconut.
- To dredge the shrimp, start by coating them in corn starch, and then in the curry paste mixture, and then finally in the panko mixture, pressing that in to ensure it sticks and adheres to all sides of the shrimp. I like to do a bunch of shrimp and set them on a baking sheet, so they’re all ready at once when it’s time to fry them.
- When all of your shrimp are breaded/coated, add enough oil to a large, deep-sided skillet to coat the bottom. Keep the oil nearby, as you will probably need to add more in between batches. Set the heat to medium high (should get to about 350 – 360 degrees F, if you have a thermometer).
- When the oil is hot and shimmering, fry the shrimp in batches until golden brown on both sides; about a minute per side. Shrimp cooks fast and the sugar in the coconut also can burn, so just keep an eye on them (don’t walk away) and reduce the heat a bit, as needed, to control the temperature. Season with a little more salt.
- Drain the cooked shrimp on a paper towel-lined plate or tray. Serve right away, with the dipping sauce, while they’re hot and crispy (they don’t keep!).
- To make the sauce: combine the sweet chili sauce and the mango chutney in a small bowl. Stit to mix well.