Vietnamese Prawn and Mango Curry

It's mango season now and I have been buying and eating many sweet juicy mangoes from the supermarket at such reasonable prices. This time of the year is the best time to experiment with all sorts of mango dishes and desserts and this Vietnamese Prawn and Mango Curry is one of those lovely recipes which I came across. 

I have never had a Vietnamese curry before and thought that the ingredients used actually resemble Thai ingredients. The curry was easy to make and aromatic from the use of shallots, lemongrass, lime leaves and basil leaves. The flavours of these ingredients are infused into the coconut milk curry and leaves a lingering fragrance as you eat it. 

The mangoes add a sweet note to the curry and goes very well with prawns (or other seafood). I'll definitely be making this again!

Vietnamese Prawn and Mango Curry (Serves 4 to 6)

Recipe adapted from here

Ingredients

• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 2 shallots, thinly sliced
• 1 carrot, cut into thin matchsticks
• 4 tbsp finely chopped lemongrass (I used 2 sticks and chopped them into large chunks, smash them for extra fragrance)
• 1 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
• 1 tbsp mild curry powder (I used 1.5 tbsp)
• 300 ml coconut milk (I used 500 ml)
• 1 tbsp fish sauce (I used 1/2 tbsp)
• 1 kg raw king prawns, peeled but tails left on
• 300g mango flesh, cut into 1.5 cm cubes
• 10 pieces of Kaffir lime leaves, torn (my own addition)
• 10 pieces of basil leaves, torn (my own addition)
• 200 ml water 
• More basil leaves to garnish

Method

• Fry the garlic, shallots and carrots in a heavy-based saucepan over a medium heat, stirring, for 1-2 minutes or until soft.
• Add the lemongrass, chilli and curry powder and cook for 3 minutes or until fragrant. Add the coconut milk, 200ml (7fl oz) water, fish sauce and basil leaves to the pan and bring to a simmer. Cook for 5 minutes and then stir in the prawns and mango. 
• Simmer, partially covered, for 3-4 minutes or until the prawns are pink and cooked through. Garnish with basil leaves and serve with steamed jasmine rice.

COOK'S TIP: Try adding 1kg mixed diced seafood - such as monkfish, cod, salmon and mussels - instead of just prawns

This post is linked to the event, Little Thumbs up organised by Doreen from my little favourite DIY and Zoe from Bake for Happy Kids, hosted by Miss B from Everybody Eats Well in Flanders, at this post.