Sri Lankan Crab Curry

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It’s the most wonderful time of the year: Dungeness crab season in the Bay Area. And during the holidays, we eat Dungeness crab. Crab cakes. Crab with butter. Singaporean chili crab. Roasted crab. And now, Jaffna-style crab curry. This stuff is so good it’ll have you licking your fingers and crying tears of joy from the endorphin rush. It burns, my friend. It burns so good. There’s a reason why this is Anthony Bourdain’s favorite Sri Lankan dish.

In my version, I substituted spinach for murungu leaves. I know, I know. A poor substitute, but I couldn’t find a single South Asian grocery in the East Bay that carries murungu leaves. And I’ve of course used Dungeness crab instead of blue swimmer crabs which are native to Sri Lanka. It ain’t pretty and it’s messy, but who cares? This is what crustacean dreams are made of.

Happy holidays, y’all.

Sri Lankan crab curry

Ingredients:

2 large cooked Dungeness crabs, cleaned
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon salt to taste
1 tablespoon raw basmati rice
1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
3 tablespoons shredded coconut
5 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons oil
1 onion, chopped
2 sprigs curry leaves
1 tomato, chopped
1 bunch spinach or murungu leaves
1 cup water
1 cup coconut milk
2 tablespoons tamarind paste, soaked in 1/3 cup warm water and pressed through a sieve, solids discarded

1. Split crabs down the middle and crack legs. Toss with turmeric powder, cayenne pepper, and salt. Set aside.

2. Toast rice, peppercorns, and cumin seeds in a small saucepan and set aside. Toast coconut in saucepan until slightly browned. Grind spices and coconut with garlic and set aside.

3. Heat oil in a medium saucepan. Saute onions, curry leaves, tomato, and spinach. Add crabs and 1/2 cup of the water. Cover and steam over high heat for 5 minutes.

4. Add the rice mixture, remaining water, and coconut milk to the saucepan. Stir and simmer for 5 minutes. Add strained tamarind liquid to pot and simmer for another 5 minutes. Remove from heat and serve warm.

Okra and Zucchini Sambar

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No two sambars are the same.

For the uninitiated, sambar is a comforting vegetable dish that’s popular in Sri Lankan Tamil and South Indian cuisine. The lentil and tamarind base are standard but the rest is up to you. Tomatoes in season? Go for it. Cauliflower? You can add that too. My favorite version includes okra and zucchini. Served typically with dosa, idli, or rice, the variations are endless.

Okra and zucchini sambar

Ingredients:

1 cup yellow lentils (toor dal)
6 cups water
2 slices ginger
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
3-4 cups mixed chopped vegetables (I used okra, zucchini, and potatoes here)
1 serrano chili, halved lengthwise
1/4 teaspoon asafoetida
1 tablespoon tamarind pulp, soaked in 1/4 cup warm water and strained for liquid (discard solids)
2 teaspoons coriander seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
1/4 teaspoon peppercorns
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon urad dal
1 sprig curry leaves
3 shallots (or 1/2 onion), thinly sliced

1. Place the lentils, water, ginger, salt and turmeric in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil, cover partially with a lid, and simmer until the lentils are very soft, about 30 minutes.

2. While the lentils are cooking, prepare the sambar powder: lightly toast the coriander and cumin seeds in a small pan until they begin to smell fragrant, about 2 minutes. Let cool and grind in a spice grinder with the cayenne pepper, fenugreek seeds, and peppercorns. Set aside.

3. When the lentils are cooked, add the prepared vegetables, serrano chili, asafoetida, tamarind liquid, and sambar powder. Stir well, bring to a boil, and simmer gently with the pan uncovered until the vegetables have cooked through.

4. Just before serving, heat the oil in a small pan and add the mustard seeds, urad dal, curry leaves, and shallots. Stir until the shallots are tender, then pour the contents of the pan onto the vegetables. Stir and serve hot.

Orange Lentil Dal with Coconut Milk and Kale

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This is my favorite dal recipe, and I don’t say that lightly. From Iranian adassi to Sri Lankan parippu, I’ve never met a version of dal I didn’t like, but I always come back to this one. Creamy, coconuty, and redolent with warm spices, this dal is what dreams are made of.

Make sure to use actual orange (or red) lentils here — not yellow split peas (chana dal/gheymeh). Toor dal will also work in a pinch. Split peas won’t give that velvety texture that lentils will. The chicken stock isn’t traditional, but it adds a savory layer of depth. This is alchemy in a bowl.

Yellow lentil dal with coconut milk and kale

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons coconut oil
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
2 onions, chopped
3 garlic cloves, chopped
2 tablespoons ginger, chopped
1 green chili pepper (such as Serrano), thinly sliced
1 quart chicken stock or broth
One 14-ounce can coconut milk
2 cups orange lentils, cleaned
1 bunch kale, stemmed and leaves coarsely chopped (about 4 cups)
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Salt
Pepper

1. In a large pot, heat 1 tablespoon of the coconut oil. Add the cumin, fennel and turmeric and cook over moderate heat, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in the remaining 2 tablespoons of coconut oil and the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly browned, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic, ginger and chili pepper and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Spoon half of the spiced onion mixture into a small bowl and reserve.

2. Add the chicken stock, coconut milk, and lentils to the saucepan and bring to a simmer. Cook over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until the lentils are tender, about 20 minutes. Add the kale and cook until tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in the lemon juice and season with salt and pepper.

3. Spoon the dal into bowls. Top with the reserved onion mixture and serve warm.

South Indian-Style Meyer Lemon Pickles

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This dish is an amalgamation of influences. The spices are Indian. The lemons are Californian. The peppers are Mexican.

South Asian lemon and lime pickles are typically cooked in the sun, the flavors soaking up the rays and developing over time. They often contain a bit of oil, a counterpart to their lip-smacking acidity. But lemon season in California is in the middle of winter, where the sun isn’t strong enough to cook much. And I wanted an oil-less pickle. Something fresh, spicy and bright to complement a seafood curry.

Enter Meyer lemon pickles. If you’re lucky enough to have access to Meyer lemons, you’ll know that they’re sweeter and juicier than you’re average lemon. We have a tree full of them, and so I experimented until I had the perfect lemon pickle. I’ve made jar after jar of these: my family asks for them now, too (lemon pickles go just as well with Iranian khoresh as they do with South Asian curry).

You’ll have to wait at least a couple of months for this pickle to be ready to eat: the peels will soften (the tastiest part), the juices will rise, and the flavors will really develop over time. Make sure to make a couple of extra jars. They won’t last long.

South Indian style Meyer lemon pickle

Ingredients:

8 Meyer lemons plus 1/2 Meyer lemon
7 green chiles (preferably Serrano), halved lengthwise
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon minced ginger
5 tablespoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1/4 teaspoon asafoetida (optional)
1 teaspoon turmeric

1. Wash and dry the 8 lemons thoroughly. Cut off the tops and ends, quarter lengthwise, and then cut each quarter into halves or thirds along the length.

2. Place the lemons in a large bowl and toss with salt and turmeric.

3. In the meantime, toast the mustard seeds, fenugreek, and asafoetida (if using) in a small pan until lightly toasted. Let cool and grind to a powder.

4. Add the spice mixture, cayenne pepper, ginger, green pepper, and juice of remaining 1/2 lemon and mix thoroughly. Divide between cleaned and sterilized jars. Seal and refrigerate, mixing every two days for the first two weeks. Wait at least 2 months before eating.

Sri Lankan Lamb (or Mutton) Curry

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The flight from San Francisco to Toronto is only four hours but each time we land, I’m hungry. I’m dreaming of curry, you see. (Doesn’t everyone?)

My mother-in-law always has a meal for us when we arrive in the evening — we can hardly wait to put away our luggage before sitting down for a meal of parripu, rice, and always some sort of curry. Sometimes fish, sometimes mutton, sometimes lamb. I love them all and as I learn to cook Sri Lankan food, lamb curry has become one of my go-tos, albeit with a few Iranian touches. I cook my basmati rice Persian-style and serve the curry with tahdig and vinegary torshi on the side.

I cannot overemphasize how worth it is to make your own curry powder here. It only takes a few minutes and the flavor is superior to store-bought. Marinate your meat overnight, cook the next day, and voila. This fiery curry tastes even better the next day. You can follow this same recipe and use mutton instead of lamb, if you prefer.

Sri Lankan lamb curry

Ingredients:

2 pounds lamb or mutton, cut into 1-inch cubes
3 tablespoons roasted curry powder
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon paprika
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons oil
1 onion, chopped
2-inch piece ginger, minced
2 green chiles, sliced
2-inch stalk lemongrass
2-inch cinnamon stick
1 or 2 sprigs curry leaves
1 1/2 cups water
1 1/2 cups coconut milk
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 tablespoons tomato paste

1. Lightly prick meat with a fork to tenderize.

2. Slightly toast the curry powder in a pan for 3 minutes, until fragrant but not burning. Remove from heat and mix with meat, cayenne powder, paprika, and vinegar and marinate for at least 4 hours or preferably overnight.

3. Heat oil in a large pot. Saute onions, garlic, ginger, chiles, lemongrass, cinnamon stick, and curry leaves until onions are translucent.

4. Add marinated meat and saute for a few minutes until browned.

5. Add water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, cover, and cook for about 30 minutes.

6. Add coconut milk, salt, and tomato paste and simmer over low heat, uncovered, for an additional 30 minutes. Serve warm with rice.