Stir-fried prawns in tomato-coconut sauce

While talking with M today, I was inspired to try something interesting for supper. I had a few constraints, though. I didn't want to make something that would involve a week of leftovers, and since I was too lazy to head out for groceries the list of ingredients would be limited to what I already had on hand. I had giant prawns and some leftover coconut milk, so I immediately thought of Madhur Jaffrey's Stir-Fried Prawns in an Aromatic Tomato-Cream Sauce. I modified her excellent recipe a bit, both to make up for a few missing ingredients and to make use of a few others. Here's what I ended up with.

Stir-Fried Prawns in Tomato-Coconut Sauce
adapted from Madhur Jaffrey's recipe in "Quick and Easy Indian Cookery"

I've included the quantities for the amount of tomato-coconut sauce that I made, although I used less than a half of it. (I'll put the rest in the fridge to use later in the week.) This made 2 servings for me, but it will depend on your appetite and how many prawns you want to eat.

2 tbsp tomato paste
½ tsp course grey salt
¼ tsp sugar
2 tsp garam masala
½ tsp super hot chili powder (since I didn't have a fresh chili)
¼ tsp sumac
a small handful of chopped cilantro
freshly ground black pepper
400 ml coconut milk
chicken broth

Whisk all of the above in a bowl, and thin to the desired consistency with some chicken broth. Set aside.

1 ½ tbsp olive oil
1 tsp black mustard seeds (I had to add some more, as they kept popping out of the pan :-)
5-6 garlic cloves, chopped
10 kaffir lime leaves, slivered
454 g giant prawns (there were about 20 prawns), peeled

Heat a pan to med-high, and add the oil. Saute the mustard seeds until they begin to pop, and then add the garlic and lime leaves. Cook until the garlic starts to brown, then add the prawns. Toss them around a bit until they start to curl, then add the tomato-coconut sauce. Reduce the temperature to medium, and cook uncovered (stirring occasionally) until the sauce is bubbling and the prawns are done to your liking.

Meanwhile, you've already prepared the following:

brown/wild rice
fresh pea shoots, lightly wilted

Plate the rice, and lay a bunch of the pea shoots on top. Place some of the prawns on the pea shoots, and spoon some sauce over all. Serve immediately.

This is an incredibly quick dish to pull together, and it turned out really well. I've made the original recipe many times, and usually serve it with spinach sauteed with garlic and fresh green chilies. But the pea shoots give it a really fresh flavour. I also liked the addition of the kaffir lime leaves and the sumac. It made up for the lack of fresh lemon (or lime). I'd definitely make this one again.