Crab Kosha

Crab Kosha -

"Chicken kosha", a bengali specialty curry is one of my party favorites. Generally I make this dish with chicken/mutton, but I  was dying to try this recipe with crab for a long time. If you do not want to use crab, try this recipe using chicken. It's better not to try this dish with any other fish as it needs a lot of stirring and the fish might break into pieces.   

Ingredients:

1 lb. crab (I have discarded the crab legs and claws in this recipe)

2 big onions, chopped

2 large tomatoes, chopped

1 tsp turmeric powder

1/4 cup tomato ketchup

2 tbsp red chili powder

2 bay leaves 

2 cloves, whole

3 tbsp oil

Ingredients for marination :

1/2 cup of curd

1 tbsp ginger garlic paste

1 tsp cumin powder

1 and 1/2 tsp garam masala powder

Preparation:

Cut and clean the crabs thoroughly , if you are using live crabs I have already demonstrated in my previous  recipe how to cut and clean live crabs. I would highly recommend that you get the people at your fish market to remove the claws at least , as this can be a bit tricky as they might try to claw you. 

In a bowl, add the ingredients for marination, next slide in the crab pieces, mix well. Keep marinated for 15 -20 minutes in the refrigerator.

In a blender, make a paste of onion and tomatoes separately.

In a large non stick skillet, heat 3 tbsp oil, add bay leaves and cloves , next add the onion paste and saute for about a minute or so till it turns brownish, next add the tomato paste and cook for another minute .

Then add the turmeric and red chili powder along with tomato ketchup to the pan and cook by constantly stirring till the raw smell vanishes and the spices starts to leave oil. 

Lastly add the marinated crabs to this mixture, mix well with the rest of the spices by constantly stirring, cover and vapor boil for 5 to 7 minutes. In this recipe, you should not add water at any point of time.

Serve hot with Rice or Paratha.