Jamaican Coconut Curry Shrimp

Calvin and I recently moved to suburbs from Brooklyn and if it’s one thing I miss about Brooklyn it’s the delicious smells coming from all of the West Indian restaurants when I drove down Utica Avenue. The smells of jerk and curry were some of my favorite smells. Ugh, I dream about it constantly on some real fat ass sh*t lol. During my biweekly food haul this week, I knew I HAD to make curry something. I grabbed some shrimp and immediately added “curry shrimp” on the list of weekly dinners.

I love watching @ThatNurseCanCook on instagram and love all of her West Indian recipes. I took a page out of her book and added coconut milk to mine as well and it was delicious. I’m a no fuss kind of girl so I made this my way with fresh ingredients, yummy spices, and a lot of love.

This dish is made with Jamaican curry powder, shrimp, onions, bell peppers, seasoning, and coconut milk.

I only had one Curry seasoning but will definitely try to incorporate one or two other curries since that’s how a lot of cooks make theirs special. And you know mine has to be “everything icy and everything exclusive” lol. I used Jamaican’s Choice Curry powder and it came out delish! Here’s how I made my version of Jamaican Coconut Curry Shrimp. It’s an easy recipe that you can execute any day of the week with ease.

Before we get into all of this goodness, I want to share a few notes:

• Curry needs ample time to cook before it’s safe to consume. You’ll want to simmer the curry before adding your shrimp to ensure that the spices have been extracted and cooked through.

• You can add a variety of curry powders to this dish. I used Jamaican Choice but I’ve seen others use a combination of different curries in their dish. This is something I plan on trying next.

• I used Jamaican style curry here as it’s a West Indian dish but you can use Indian style curry if preferred. Although the flavors may be a bit different.

• I you’re into spice add in a scotch bonnet pepper. I like to add the Home Beis scotch bonnet infused oil as an alternative and it’s delicious. But again, add at your own risk

Ok now lets get into it!

Ingredients:

Season the Shrimp:

• 1 lb of peeled and deveined of jumbo shrimp, tail on

• 1 tablespoon of Curry Powder (I used Jamaican Choice)

• 1/2 teaspoon of all purpose seasoning (I used Home Beis Tradicional blend)

• 1/4 teaspoon of Old Bay seasoning

• Pinch of salt

For the Curry:

• 2 Tablespoons olive oil

• 1 tablespoon of Curry Powder (I used Jamaican’s Choice)

• 1/2 teaspoon all purpose seasoning (I used Home Beis Tradicional blend)

• 1 medium yellow onion sliced

• 1 medium red bell pepper sliced

• 1 medium green bell pepper sliced

• 3 cloves garlic chopped

• 1 inch piece of ginger, finely chopped

• 3 sprigs of fresh thyme

• 1 teaspoon of Home Beis House Blend (garlic powder works too)

• Half of a can of can of unsweetened coconut milk

• 1 scotch bonnet pepper (optional)

• 1/2 cup of water

• Salt and pepper

Directions:

First, we season the shrimp. Add the shrimp to a bowl and season with the curry powder, all purpose seasoning, Old Bay and salt. Mix to combine and set aside.

Next, we make our Curry. Add oil to a medium pan under medium to high heat. Then, add in your curry powder. With a cooking spoon mix the curry powder to ensure that it combines with the oil in your pan.

Then, add in your fresh ingredients. To the pan, add in the onions, peppers, garlic, ginger, and thyme. With your cooking spoon, mix to combine to ensure that the fresh veggies cook with the oil and curry in your pan. Sauté for 1-2 minutes.

Now, add in your coconut milk and your scotch bonnet pepper (a great alternative is scotch bonnet infused olive oil !). Add in the water and then stir to combine.

Lower heat and cover. Allow the curry to cook for about 15 minutes. The curry powder will cook through and the sauce will reduce.

Now we add the shrimp. Once the curry is cooked and has reduced. Add the shrimp. Stir to combine. Cover the pan once more to allow the shrimp to cook. The shrimp should take about 8-10 minutes to cook. Be very careful not to overcook your shrimp. Overcooked shrimp can be a bit gummy.

Plate the curry shrimp with white rice and of course with fried sweet plantain and/or roti. So delicious!