Mostly I cook in lieu of travelling, but this is my way of reminding myself that I once was that person who sat in the shade on gold sand under blue skies gazing at an ocean bluer still…
This is a sprightly curry, fierily orange and warm with cinnamon and nutmeg. Make some plain basmati rice to go with it and you’re done.
1 tablespoon turmeric
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
half teaspoon chilli powder
quarter teaspoon mace
4cm piece fresh ginger
2 cloves garlic
1 onion
salt
2 tablespoons groundnut oil
1 x 400g tin chopped tomatoes
juice and zest of half a lemon
1 stick cinnamon
1 tablespoon curry leaves
750g medium raw prawns, shelled and deveined
good grating nutmeg
handful chopped fresh coriander
3–4 green finger chillies
Measure out the turmeric, coriander, cumin, chilli powder and mace into a bowl and grate over the peeled ginger and garlic cloves with a microplane. Add a little water to form a paste, and then leave to one side. Finely chop the onion, adding a bit of Maldon salt to stop it catching, and fry gently in the oil until it softens. Stir in the spice paste and, stirring still, cook for a minute or so. Pour in the tomatoes, then fill the empty can with water and add it to the pan. Squeeze in the lemon juice and pop in the cinnamon stick and curry leaves, and let the whole sauce simmer gently for about half an hour so that it can thicken and the ground spices will lose their floury taste.
When you are ready to eat – and you can cook the sauce well in advance if this suits – add the raw prawns and let them cook through. Keep tasting them to make sure they have lost their glassy middle.
Pour the curry into a shallow bowl and grate well with fresh nutmeg and the lemon zest. Sprinkle over the coriander, and split the finger chillies lengthwise leaving their stalks and seeds intact (unless you are a wuss about such matters, in which case deseed by all means). Arrange them as artistically as you please over the dish.
Serves 4–6.