Chemmeen Puliyilayittathu - Banana leaf wrapped Prawns with Tamarind leaves (steamed)

World Health Day is round the corner (on April 7th), and Licious along with Plattershare is having a contest for Home Chefs in multiple cities for celebrating WHD 2017. Summer is the best season for most of the seasonal fruits in India. Fruits like jackfruit, mangoes, and melons will be available in abundant. When I came across this contest, I wanted to do something different yet healthy recipe. Tamarind is widely used in our country and India is the largest producer of Tamarind. Mostly people use the fruit and it has got plenty of medicinal values. Similarly, Tamarind leaves also have lot of benefits- one which is that you can use this for cooking. I thought of doing an experiment and this recipe came out as one of the best recipes of mine. It’s similar to Parsi dish Patrani Machchi. Do try this recipe before the summer season gets over and I’m sure you’ll love it.

 

Servings: 3-4

Total time: 1 hour (prep time) + 20 mins (cooking time)

Ingredients

Prawns (medium size) | 250 gms 

Tamarind leaves | ¾ cup 

Coconut (grated) | ½ cup 

Green Chili | 6 no’s 

Shallots | 4-5 no’s

Garlic | 2 cloves 

Coconut oil | 2 Tbsp 

Salt | as per taste 

Chili powder | ¼ tsp

Turmeric powder | ¼ tsp

Banana leaves | for steaming

Directions

1. Wash and clean the prawns. Devein it carefully. (I got cleaned and deveined prawns from Licious)

2. In a bowl, add prawns, chili powder, turmeric powder and a pinch of salt. Mix well and marinate for 15-30 mins.

3. In a mixer, grind the cleaned tamarind leaves, grated coconut, chilies, shallots, and garlic. Do not add water. Add coconut oil and salt while grinding the masala.

4. Mix this paste with Prawns and keep it aside.

5. Cut banana leaves into square shapes and use the stem as a thread for tying the packets. Heat both sides of the leaves on medium flame. This will avoid tearing off leaves while making the packets.

6. Place the marinated prawns (3-5 no’s) in the center of each leaf and fold and tie it carefully.

7. Keep water for boiling in a steamer and once the water is hot, place all the packets in the tray. Cover it with a lid and steam it for 15-20 mins.

8. Once it’s ready, remove from the tray and serve it hot with rice/millets or Indian bread.

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