Chemmeen Achar / Prawns Pickle

Do you love Prawns /Shrimp ??I love the tiny curled up ones a lot, and so any recipe with prawns am in.And what about pickles? I know many have nodded 'yes'.The duo together makes a perfect relishing meal with no curries and side dishes with plain steamed rice.Mom used to put  fish achar,prawns achar,beef achar and so on,I think this is not the exact copy of what I tasted from her but this one is good in its own way.Enjoy the lip smacking pickle at home but be sure you make with larger quantities of prawns as these shrink to these tiny ones and yields very less pickle.And if you have a pickle favorite family then it will vanish in just one meal!!:-)

Ingredients-
For marination
Prawns - 12 oz pkt
chilly powder -1 tsp
turmeric powder -1/4 tsp
salt

For pickling
chilly powder -2tsp
turmeric powder -1/4tsp
fenugreek seeds 1/2tsp
mustard seeds 1tsp
asafoetida  a good pinch
garlic  5 sliced
ginger 2'' thick sliced
green chillies 4-5 vertical slit
vinegar 4 tbsp
oil 3-4 tbsp (both for shallow frying & sauting)
curry leaves
salt

Method
- Clean the prawns by rubbing salt and lime,keep for 10-15minutes.
-Wash under running water and marinate using the marination ingredients.Keep for 30-45 minutes.
-Pre heat oven to 350 degrees F and spray a tray with olive oil ,spread prawns in the tray &bake the prawns for 20 minutes.(reduces the moisture content, reduced oil usage & increases shelf life of pickle)
-Remove from oven & heat oil in  a pan and shallow fry the prawns.Keep aside in a plate.
-Splutter mustard seeds and fenugreek seeds, add curry leaves.
-Saute the sliced ginger ,garlic & green chillies.
-Then,add the chilly powder on low flame ,turmeric powder .Slide in the prawns & mix well. Put off the flame and add vinegar.
-Tasty chemmeen /Prawns pickle is ready .Keep for 2-3 days undisturbed and then use it.

Servings ~ 1 small bottle

NOTES -
* I used the small shrimp and used frozen packet .
* You can use any other oil too if you are not preserving for long.
* This is a dry version .You can increase the oil or vinegar to increase the gravy.
* If you want to omit the baking step then, deep fry the prawns before pickling.
* The oil should be preferably gingelly oil if you plan to preserve longer.I knew my family and so have used olive oil only as it had a shelf life of just one week.Usage of oil can be modified in your own way,increase if you're deep frying and also if preserving longer.

Sending this to The Kerala Kitchen event hosted by Ramya @ Ramya's Recipes,