Spices Bring Taste Of India To Shrimp And Rice 

Copyright 1994 Miami Herald
From Knight-Ridder/Tribune Information Services
Selected and Prepared by Tribune Media Services

By Linda Gassenheimer
Knight-Ridder Newspaper

The intriguing foods and flavors of India are becoming very popular. Lately, I notice
there are more curry-based dishes on restaurant menus and more Indian foods in
supermarkets. This means we can prepare a curry dinner without making an extra trip
to a specialty food store.

For this quick meal, I used spices from my supermarket, including curry powder. Strictly
speaking, curry powder doesn't exist in India. Good cooks prefer to make their own
blend of spices using the freshest ingredients. One that's delicious is cardamom, an
aromatic spice related to the ginger family. It has a spicy, sweet flavor.

Indian basmati rice has a distinct flavor and smells like popcorn while cooking. You can
buy imported basmati rice in some supermarkets; domestic Texmati is readily available.
I love the flavor of basmati, but use whichever one you can find.

Both the shrimp and rice freeze well. If you like, double the recipe and freeze half for
another dinner. This meal has 740 calories, with 21 percent of them from fat.

Buy shelled shrimp if possible. Many supermarkets will remove the shells for a small
charge. I find the slightly higher cost is worth the time saved.

I like to boil rice like pasta, in a pot large enough to let the grains roll freely in the water.
This method gives fluffy rice every time.

Keep canned chicken stock in the refrigerator. Fat will harden and can easily be
removed.

Place water for rice on to boil.
Prepare Curried Shrimp ingredients.
Make rice.
Cook shrimp.
Curried Shrimp
3/4 pound jumbo or large shrimp
1 teaspoon margarine or butter
1/2 red bell pepper, sliced
2 medium shallots, chopped
2 teaspoons curry powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/4 cup mango chutney
1 tablespoon flour
1 cup defatted low-salt chicken stock
Several drops hot pepper sauce
1 cup frozen peas
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Shell and devein shrimp. Heat margarine in a non-stick skillet and add bell pepper and
shallots. Saute one minute and add curry powder, cinnamon and cardamom. Mix in
chutney and add shrimp. Cook about one minute. Add flour and toss 1 minute. Add
chicken stock, hot pepper sauce and peas and simmer 2 minutes. Add salt and pepper to
taste. Serve over rice. Makes 2 servings.

Nutritional information per serving: 343 calories; 33 grams protein; 39 grams
carbohydrate; 6 grams fat; 15 percent of calories as fat; 4 grams fiber; 198 milligrams
cholesterol; 285 milligrams sodium. 

Ten-Minute Raisin and Almond Rice

1/2 cup white basmati rice
1 teaspoon margarine or butter
1/2 cup raisins
1/4 cup slivered almonds
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Place rice in a strainer and wash under cold running water. Bring a large pot with 2 to 3
quarts of water to a boil. Add rice and boil, uncovered, about 10 minutes. Test a grain;
rice should be cooked through, but not soft. Drain into a colander. Run hot water
through rice and stir with a fork. Put in a bowl and mix in margarine, raisins and
almonds. Add salt and pepper to taste. Makes 2 servings.

Nutritional information per serving: 397 calories; 8 grams protein; 71 grams
carbohydrate; 11 grams fat; 24 percent of calories as fat; 3.4 grams fiber; 0 cholesterol; 29
milligrams sodium. Exchange values: 1.9 fruit, 2.7 bread, 2.2 fat. 

To buy
3/4 pound jumbo or large shrimp
1 medium red bell pepper
2 medium shallots
1 bottle curry powder
1 bottle ground cardamom
1 small jar mango chutney
1 small package frozen peas
1 small package white basmati rice
1 small package slivered almonds
Staples
ground cinnamon
raisins
flour
hot pepper sauce
low-salt chicken stock
margarine or butter
salt
black peppercorns