A flavor-packed Asian seafood curry loaded with boneless fish and shrimps is sure to give you comfort and soothe your soul when you need it the most! Serve it with white rice and enjoy the most satisfying meal on earth!
When you think about seafood, what comes to your mind immediately? Lobster? When I think about seafood, the first thing that knocks my mind is shrimp!
I am an avid shrimp lover which you can easily guess from the incredible number of shrimp recipes in my blog!
I am also fond of the boneless & meaty fish filets which soak up any flavor beautifully and satiate your taste buds like nothing else!
This Asian seafood curry is a perfect marriage of both of my favorites laced with a luscious and glossy sauce made of coconut milk. Addition of spices takes this regular curry to a whole new level!
Why would you love this Asian seafood curry?
This seafood curry has a creamy and luscious gravy made of coconut milk which pleases our taste buds like nothing else. The succulent and flaky cubes of fish and shrimps pair best with coconut milk based gravy and that’s why this recipe of seafood curry is a winner!
Another best thing about this one is that you can use any fish of your choice to make this crowd-pleasing recipe. If you want to make it all about shrimps, please feel free! It will be your signature shrimp curry!
This recipe is somewhat similar to the popular Thai curries – red, green and yellow. The only difference is that we are making the spices for this curry from scratch and not using any readymade paste.
The spices are pretty simple and mostly are staples from your pantry especially if you cook Asian food often. If not, you can just stock small bottles of coriander, cumin and fenugreek seeds in your pantry and they will last for long thanks to their long shelf life.
Ingredients for Asian seafood curry
This Asian seafood curry can take in any seafood of your choice. Since I made it for my family, I used what we love the most.
Choice of seafood: I have used skinless filets of tilapia & basa fish and loads of shrimps. I love the smooth and silky texture of basa and tilapia; but there is no restriction of using any seafood in this curry. Feel free to use any fish of your choice or even squid. It will turn out to be as delicious!
Spice mix: You will need a handful of below listed spices to convert your curry from simple to awesome!
Dried red chilli: This will give the right amount of kick and balance the sweetness of coconut milk.
Coriander seeds/Cumin seeds/Fenugreek seeds: The combination of these 3 power-packed spices imparts a mind-blowing flavor to the curry sauce. Don’t skip any!
Green cardamom: Adds warmth to the curry and complements the other flavorful spices. It is the combination of all that does the trick!
Whole black peppercorns: Earthy flavor of black peppercorns pairs well with seafood and hence a must!
Turmeric powder: Gives the curry a beautiful & bright yellow color which will bring instant smile & happiness on your face!
Oil: Ideally you should use coconut oil to get maximum flavor but I would not recommend buying a bottle of coconut oil only for this recipe if you don’t use it often. Hence you can use any flavorless vegetable oil.
Onion: You will need one finely chopped onion, about a cup.
Aromatics: Any curry is incomplete without these universal aromatics – ginger and garlic! You will need a good amount of both.
Tomatoes: Fresh and plump red tomatoes to give a tangy taste and balance the sweetness of coconut milk.
Coconut milk: Star of the show! You will need a can of 400 grams coconut milk; ensure it is of good quality and not too diluted.
Fresh cilantro to garnish and salt to taste.
How to make Asian seafood curry?
There are 2 elements in making this seafood curry – prepping the fish with spices and making the curry. Then combine the two to make an incredible combination!
Step 1: First we will make the spice powder from scratch and not use any readymade spice mix. This will give you maximum flavor along with your personal touch!
Heat a skillet and add dry red chillies, coriander & cumin seeds, green cardamom, fenugreek and whole peppercorns and dry roast them on high for 1 minute until they are fragrant.
Step 2: Transfer the roasted spices to a mortar and pestle or a dry spice grinder and crush them to make fine spice mix powder; do this while the whole spices are still warm. Now add turmeric powder and salt to it, mix them in and set aside.
Step 3: Now let’s prepare the fish filets. Cut the filets into 2-inch chunks. Sprinkle one-third of the prepared spice powder on both sides of the fish filet cubes and rub them evenly. Do the same with cleaned & deveined shrimps.
Step 4: Heat about 1 tablespoon of oil in a skillet and shallow fry the spice coated fish cubes for 2 minutes each side. Take them out on a plate.
Step 5: Heat another tablespoon of oil in the same skillet and shallow fry the shrimps for 2 to 3 minutes each side. Do not overcook the shrimps. Take them out on a plate.
Step 6: Now take a sauce pot and heat remaining oil. If there is any leftover oil in the skillet after frying the fish & shrimps, pour that into the sauce pot too as it has all the flavors of shrimps and fish cubes.
Step 7: Once the oil is hot, add chopped onion and fry them for 10 minutes on medium heat until golden brown.
Step 8: Next add minced garlic and grated ginger and stir them in to mix well for 2 minutes until the raw smell of aromatics are gone. Add in the chopped tomatoes and stir them in. Cover and cook for 6 to 7 minutes until tomatoes are mushy and completely broken down.
Step 9: Now it’s time to add the last one-third of the prepared spice mix. Add and stir fry for 1 minute until it becomes fragrant.
Step 10: Add the coconut milk from the can, add about half a cup of water to the empty can, give a shake and pour that water too into the sauce pot.
Give a good stir, cover the pot and let it simmer for 15 minutes. These 15 minutes are essential as it will let all the flavors mingle together and create a tempting amalgamation.
Step 11: Finally add the sauteed fish cubes & shrimps and let them simmer in the sauce for 5 to 6 minutes. Check the consistency of the sauce and if too thick, add little water to adjust. Check and adjust for seasoning if needed.
Step 12: Garnish with freshly chopped coriander and serve warm with white rice!
Other seafood recipes that you will love
- Thai Prawn Massaman Curry
- Thai Red Fish Curry
- Fish Stew with Vegetable | Protein and Omega-3 Rich Dinner for Weightloss
- Mixed fish filet - 250 gms tilapia filet and 250 gms basa filet (skinless & boneless)
- Shrimp - 200 gms, cleaned, peeled and deveined
- Dried red chilli - 2
- Coriander seeds - 2 tsp
- Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
- Green cardamom - 2 pods
- Fenugreek seeds - ½ tsp
- Whole black peppercorns - 1 tsp
- Turmeric powder - 1 tsp
- Coconut oil or vegetable oil - 4 tbsp
- Onion - 1, large, finely chopped
- Garlic - 6 to 8 cloves, minced
- Ginger - 1-inch piece, grated
- Tomatoes - 4, large, finely chopped
- Coconut milk - 2 cups (1 400 gm can)
- Fresh cilantro to garnish
- Salt to taste
- Heat a skillet and add dry red chillies, coriander & cumin seeds, green cardamom, fenugreek and whole peppercorns and dry roast them on high for 1 minute until they are fragrant.
- Then transfer them to a mortar and pestle and crush them to make fine spice mix powder. Add turmeric and salt to it, mix them in and set aside.
- Cut the fish filets into 2-inch chunks. Sprinkle one-third of the prepared spice powder on both sides of the fish filet cubes and rub them evenly.
- Heat about 1 tablespoon of oil in a skillet and shallow fry the spice coated fish cubes for 2 minutes each side. Take them out on a plate.
- Sprinkle another one-third of the spice powder on the cleaned and peeled shrimps and rub them on all sides.
- Heat another tablespoon of oil in the same skillet and shallow fry the shrimps for 2 to 3 minutes each side. Do not overcook the shrimps. Take them out on a plate.
- Now take a sauce pot and heat remaining oil. If there is any oil left in the skillet, pour that into the sauce pot too as it has all the flavors of shrimps and fish cubes.
- Once the oil is hot, add chopped onion and fry them for 10 minutes on medium heat until golden brown.
- Next add minced garlic and grated ginger and stir them in to mix well for 2 minutes until the raw smell of aromatics are gone.
- Then add the chopped tomatoes and stir them in. Cover and cook for 6 to 7 minutes until tomatoes are mushy and completely broken down.
- Now it’s time to add the remaining one-third of the prepared spice mix. Add and stir fry for 1 minute.
- Add the coconut milk and about half a cup of water. Give a good stir and cover the pot and let it simmer for 15 minutes.
- Finally add the sauteed fish cubes & shrimps and let them simmer in the sauce for 5 to 6 minutes. Check the consistency of the sauce and if too thick add little water to adjust. Check and adjust for seasoning if needed.
- Your Asian seafood curry is ready! Garnish with freshly chopped coriander and serve warm with white rice! Enjoy!
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