Shrimp Pulao or Prawns Pulao is a delicious one-pot Indian rice dish made using rice, shrimp, herbs, and spices. I am sharing 2 ways in which you can make this pulao at home.
If you love prawns as much as I do, try these recipes too and I am sure you will love them – Grilled Sambal Prawns, Chilli Prawns, Garlic Butter Shrimp, Kerala Prawn Curry, and Prawn Coconut Curry.
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About This Recipe
Shrimp Pulao or Prawns Pulao is an Indian-style rice dish where rice is cooked with shrimp, herbs, and spices.
It is spicy, loaded with flavors, and super easy to make, perfect for days when you want to eat something delicious but have no time to make elaborate meals. It is also my go-to recipe to make for potlucks, house parties, or family dinners.
Shrimp Pulao is made in different ways in different homes. In today’s post, I am sharing 2 styles in which I make it at my home.
You can either make it by cooking raw rice with prawns and spices or stir-fry the cooked rice with spices and prawns. Both styles are great in their own way. So try them both and tell me in the comments which one you liked more.
Ingredients
Rice – Use any white rice that is easily available. You can also use brown rice or quinoa instead of white rice.
Prawns – I have used medium-sized prawns but small, jumbo, or tiger prawns also work great. Use fresh or frozen prawns. If using frozen, then thaw them before cooking.
For the Green Masala – This shrimp pulao recipe uses a refreshing and tasty green masala that is made with a combination of fresh tomatoes, green chilies, fresh coconut, cilantro (coriander), and mint leaves.
Adjust the green chilies according to your taste.
Whole Spices – Whole spices release a beautiful aroma and flavor when added to hot ghee or oil. I have used cloves, black peppercorns, bay leaves, cinnamon, and green cardamoms.
Oil and Ghee – I have used a combination of oil and ghee to make this pulao, but you can use any one of them.
Spice Powders – You will need coriander powder, Kashmiri red chili powder, turmeric powder, and garam masala powder.
Others – Apart from the ingredients mentioned above, you will also need onions, ginger garlic paste, lime juice, and salt.
How To Make Shrimp Pulao
Recipe 1 – By Cooking Raw Rice With Shrimp And Spices
Clean and devein 8 oz (250 g) of shrimp.
Wash 1 and ½ cups of white rice 2-3 times with water until the water runs clear. Soak it in 4-5 cups of water for 20 minutes. This process will make sure the rice is fluffy and cook evenly.
Add ½ cup chopped tomatoes, 2-3 green chilies, ¼ cup chopped fresh coconut, ¼ cup cilantro, and ¼ cup fresh mint in a blender.
Add ¼ cup water and blend to make a smooth paste. Set aside.
Heat 1 tablespoon ghee and 1 tablespoon oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, add 2-3 whole cloves, 3-4 whole peppercorns, 2 bay leaves, 1-inch piece of cinnamon stick, and 2 whole green cardamoms and let them crackle for 3-4 seconds.
Add ¼ cup chopped onions and fry until they are slightly browned (8-10 minutes). Keep stirring at regular intervals while frying.
Add 1 tablespoon ginger-garlic paste and cook for 2-3 minutes.
Now add the ground green masala paste, 1 teaspoon coriander powder, 1 teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder, and ½ teaspoon turmeric powder and cook for 2-3 minutes. I always use Kashmiri red chili in my cooking as it’s not too hot and gives a beautiful color to the dishes.
Add the cleaned prawns, 1 teaspoon lime juice, ½ teaspoon garam masala powder, and salt to taste. Mix everything well.
Drain the water from the rice and add the rice to the pan. Add 2 and ½ cups of water and mix gently. Rice to water ratio is very important to get the perfect texture of the pulao, so be very careful with that. Use standard cups and spoon measurements to measure the ingredients for the best results.
Cover the pan with a tight-fitting lid and cook the rice on low heat until all the liquid is absorbed and the rice is cooked well. It will take 20-25 minutes for the rice to cook perfectly.
Once the rice is cooked, remove the pan from heat and let the pulao rest for 5 minutes. Remove the lid of the pan and fluff the shrimp pulao using a fork. Serve hot.
Recipe 2 – By Stir-Frying Cooked Rice With Prawns And Spices
Cook 1 cup of raw rice and cool it completely. It is preferable to use day-old rice in this recipe.
Clean and devein 8 oz (250 g) of shrimp.
Add ½ cup chopped tomatoes, 2-3 green chilies, ¼ cup chopped fresh coconut, ¼ cup cilantro, and ¼ cup fresh mint in a blender. Add ¼ cup water and blend to make a smooth paste. Set aside
Heat 1 tablespoon ghee and 1 tablespoon oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, add 2-3 whole cloves, 3-4 whole peppercorns, 2 bay leaves, 1-inch piece of cinnamon stick, and 2 whole green cardamoms and let them crackle for 3-4 seconds.
Add ¼ cup chopped onions and fry until they are slightly browned (8-10 minutes). Keep stirring at regular intervals while frying.
Add 1 tablespoon ginger-garlic paste and cook for 2-3 minutes.
Add the cleaned prawns, 1 teaspoon lime juice, and ½ teaspoon garam masala powder, and mix everything well. Cook for 2-3 minutes.
Add the green masala paste, 1 teaspoon coriander powder, 1 teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder, ½ teaspoon turmeric powder, salt to taste, and cook for 5-6 minutes until the masala is almost dry.
Add the cooled cooked rice and toss well to coat it with the masala. Cook for 2-3 minutes. Serve hot.
Frequently Asked Questions
It is very important to remove the black vein on the upper body of the prawns. If left, it can lead to serious allergies. Most frozen prawns come cleaned, but to be on the safer side, do check the details on the packet.
Cleaning prawns is an easy process! First and foremost, start by rinsing prawns in cold water and discard any that are discolored or slimy.
Hold the prawn tightly and firmly twist the head. Next, hold the tail, peel away the outer shell, and pull off the legs from the underside of the shell.
Now use a knife and put a small cut that runs down the length of the prawn’s back.
Once you make a cut, you will see a small black line, it’s the vein. Use the tip of the knife to pull out the vein and discard it. Clean all the prawns in the same way.
Rinse once more with cold water. The prawns are ready to cook.
Follow the same recipe as given below, close the lid of the cooker and cook on high heat for 2 whistles. Remove the cooker from the heat and let the pressure release naturally.
Open the cooker, fluff the shrimp pulao with a fork, and serve hot.
No, this recipe uses ghee, which is a dairy ingredient. If you want a dairy-free version, skip adding ghee and make this pulao only in oil.
Pro Tips By Neha
To make the shrimp pulao more wholesome, you can add veggies like potatoes, carrots, capsicum, or peas.
You can also add some biryani masala, tandoori masala, or spicy goda masala to the prawns pulao for a taste change.
Chopped dill tastes great in this recipe.
Replace water with thin coconut milk for a coconutty pulao.
Serving Suggestions
Shrimp pulao tastes great with plain yogurt or raita. I like to serve it with Tomato Onion Raita, Burani Raita, Boondi Raita, or Cucumber Raita. Drizzle a little ghee on top and serve crispy papad on the side for a hearty meal.
Storage Suggestions
You can store the leftover shrimp pulao in the refrigerator for 2 days.
If you want to keep it for a longer time, then freeze it in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. Once ready to eat, just thaw for 2-3 hours over the counter, then micro until warm and serve.
If the pulao looks dry, you can splash some water over it before putting it in the microwave.
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Recipe Card
Shrimp Pulao Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 and ½ cups white rice (I used basmati rice but any white rice will work fine.)
- ½ cup chopped tomatoes
- 2-3 green chilies (slit into half)
- ¼ cup grated fresh coconut
- ¼ cup cilantro (coriander) (packed)
- ¼ cup fresh mint (packed)
- 1 tablespoon ghee
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 2-3 whole cloves
- 3-4 whole black peppercorns
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 inch piece of cinnamon stick
- 2 whole green cardamom
- ¼ cup chopped onions
- 1 tablespoon ginger garlic paste
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder
- 1 teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
- 8 ounce shrimp (prawns) (250 g, cleaned and deveined.)
- 1 teaspoon lime juice
- ½ teaspoon garam masala powder
- salt (to taste)
Instructions
Recipe 1 – By Cooking Raw Rice With Shrimp And Spices
- Wash the white rice 2-3 times with water until the water runs clear and soak it in 4-5 cups of water for 20 minutes.
- Add tomatoes, green chilies, coconut, cilantro, and mint to the blender along with ¼ cup water. Blend until smooth. Set aside.
- Heat ghee and oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, add cloves, black peppercorns, bay leaves, cinnamon stick, and green cardamoms and let them crackle for 3-4 seconds.
- Add onions and fry until they are slightly browned (8-10 minutes). Keep stirring at regular intervals while frying.
- Add ginger-garlic paste and cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Now add the ground green masala paste, coriander powder, Kashmiri red chili powder, and turmeric powder and cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Add the cleaned prawns, lime juice, garam masala powder, and salt. Mix everything well.
- Drain the water from the rice and add it to the pan. Add 2 and ½ cups of water and mix gently.
- Cover the pan with a tight-fitting lid and cook the rice on low heat until all the liquid is absorbed and rice is cooked well. It will take 20-25 minutes for the rice to cook perfectly.
- Once the rice is cooked, remove the pan from heat and let the pulao rest for 5 minutes. Remove the lid of the pan and fluff the prawns pulao using a fork. Serve hot.
Recipe 2 – By Stir-Frying Cooked Rice With Prawns And Spices
- Cook 1 cup of raw rice and cool it completely. It is preferable to use day-old rice in this recipe.
- Add tomatoes, green chilies, coconut, cilantro, and fresh mint to a blender. Add ¼ cup water and blend to make a smooth paste. Set aside.
- Heat ghee and oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, add whole cloves, whole peppercorns, bay leaves, cinnamon stick, and whole green cardamoms and let them crackle for 3-4 seconds.
- Add onions and fry until they are slightly browned (8-10 minutes). Keep stirring at regular intervals while frying.
- Add ginger-garlic paste and cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Now add the cleaned prawns, lime juice, and garam masala powder, and mix everything well. Cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Add the green masala paste, coriander powder, Kashmiri red chili powder, turmeric powder, salt to taste, and cook for 5-6 minutes until the masala is almost dry.
- Add the cooled cooked rice and toss well to coat it with the masala. Cook for 2-3 minutes. Serve hot.
Dr. Deepu
Simply gorgeous!!! Heartful thanks to the entire Whiskaffair family.
Neha Mathur
Thank you 🙂
Winnie
A simple preparation using regular spices but so flavorful and absolutely delicious. The only change I made was marinating the prawns. Loved it.
Neha Mathur
Happy to hear 🙂
Bhavna
When adding the rice in the masala, should we let the prawns be in it? Won’t they get rubbery?
Neha Mathur
They are cooked in low heat so don’t turn chewy.