Curry with coconut, green chillies and mustard seeds

This curry is from Rick Stein’s India book. It’s on p128 and he uses prawns, but I’ve also made it with fresh cod, as well as a selection of veggies for a delicious veg curry. The combination of turmeric, coconut milk, coconut flakes, mustard seeds and green chillies is simply sublime! This is one of my go-to curries as it’s so quick and easy to make, as well as being great for immunity and health.

Ingredients:

Serves 4-6

• 2 tbsp black (brown) mustard seeds
• 4 tbsp extra virgin coconut oil or mustard seed oil
• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 250ml coconut milk
• 250g fresh or frozen coconut flesh, blitzed in a food processor or grated, or use desiccated coconut if you’ve not got fresh
• 1 tsp salt
• 350g peeled raw prawns, or 4-6 servings of white fish, or any vegetables of your choice if you want a vegan meal
• 4 fresh green chillies, with seeds, cut lengthways into sixths
• Handful of chopped coriander, to finish

Method:

1. Put the mustard seeds into a mini food processor and add 2 tablespoons of water. Blend for a minute or so, then add another 2 tablespoons of water and continue blending until the seeds start to break up. Keep blending until you have a rough paste that resembles whole grain mustard (this could take up to a couple of minutes. You may need to add more water as you go along).
2. Heat the coconut oil or mustard oil in a heavy based pan over a low-medium heat. Add the onion and fry for 10 minutes.
3. Add the blended mustard paste, turmeric, coconut milk, grated coconut and salt. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 4-5 minutes.
4. Add the prawns and green chillies and simmer for a further 3-4 minutes. If you’re using other fish this you may need to cook for a little longer – just check to see if your fish is cooked through. If you’re using a selection of veg, you may need to cook them in the coconut milk for around 15 minutes until al dente, or simply steam them a little before putting in. Experiment!
5. Scatter with coriander and serve. I like to use cauliflower rice for a low carb rice option.