One thing we can assure you is a guaranteed indulgence and a lifelong relationship with Goan food. Another feature of Goan cuisine that you can’t miss while talking about it is how it’s brought into being and developed majorly with the influence of Portugal. Is prawn balchao in Portugal too? Let’s find out.
Goan cuisine is truly pleasing for those who are profoundly fond of seafood and love savouring the taste of it all year round. It is difficult not to fall with the plethora of Goan dishes that this cuisine has offered us since ancient times. The scenic beauty, nature, and the long stretch of overwhelming beaches have already taken our breath away, but if you ever attempted to try the most authentic and traditional dishes of Goa.
Balchao is a fiery dish from Goa cuisine, which is almost like a pickle. Not just because it is as hot, peppery and tangy as a pickle, but because of the unique styles and means of preparation, which resembles pickling. Like you put together your pickles, Balchao follows a similar approach as they can be made in advance without reheating. Balchao is a meat dish cooked with fish, pawns, or pork tossed in spicy and tangy tomato sauce. Traditionally, balchao also uses a paste made from shrimp known as ‘galmbo’ in Konkani.
Balchao is one of the well-known spi
Read MoreClean the prawns in a large bowl of water or under running water; strain them out.
Marinate the prawns in salt and turmeric powder to remove the seafood smell from them.
Add some oil to a pan and saute the prawns in batches for about 2-3 minutes.
Remove the prawns from the pan and drain the extra oil with absorbent paper.
Dry roast the chillies, pepper, cumin, cloves and cinnamon for a minute or so. Grind them to a fine paste by adding ginger-garlic paste, vinegar and water.
In a pan, heat some oil and fry the onions till they are golden brown and translucent.
Next, add the tomatoes and the curry leaves and cook till they are mushy. Add the spice paste and cook till the raw smell disappears.
Once the mixture is cooked, add the prawns along with sugar and cook till there is no water left.
Bring it to a gravy consistency and check for spice levels; adjust accordingly.
Remove the gravy from heat and voila!
Balchao actually tastes better when allowed to rest for a few hours or overnight. The spices and tang deepen, making it more flavorful the next day.
Absolutely. Just thaw them completely and pat dry before marinating. This prevents excess water from making the Balchao watery.
Because of the black pepper and red chillies, it is typically fairly hot. You can adjust the number of chillies to suit your spice tolerance.
Vinegar gives Balchao its characteristic tang. If you skip it, you can use lime juice as a milder alternative, but the flavour will change slightly.
Balchao goes well with sannas (Goan rice cakes) or even gently toasted bread, but it’s especially great with plain steamed rice.
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