Easy tandoori prawns recipe – let’s learn to make an Indian restaurant-style tandoori prawns recipe with easy step-by-step pictures. Tandoori masala-coated roasted prawns or shrimps are known as tandoori prawns. This Indian-style grilled prawns starter is most popular among seafood lovers.
It is easy to make at home by simply marinating the prawns with yogurt, ginger-garlic paste, tandoori masala, and grill or roast for making this recipe.
As this dish named tandoori means tandoori masala and tandoor oven both are equally required for making this recipe. Though tandoori masala is easily available in local provisional stores, however, managing a tandoor oven(cylindrical-shaped covered charcoal oven) at home is next to impossible.
So today I made this tandoori prawn just on a gas stove by using a grill pan. Even instead of using store-bought masala, my homemade tandoori masala creates its magic over this dish.
As prawns are also known as jhinga in North Indian cuisines. So this tandoori prawns are also described as tandoori jhinga.
Generally, for making tandoori prawns, I mostly use medium white prawns or tiger prawns. Though giant or king-size prawns can also be used to make this recipe.
You can easily make this tandoori prawns recipe in a grilled pan or even a regular used tawa of your kitchen. Even by applying this method, you can bring that smokey flavour and charred effect contain in all tandoori recipes. The same burning charcoal technique I applied in my tandoori chicken recipe is also used to bring smokey flavors. Whereas roasting the prawns in the direct flame brings the charred effect.
I mostly serve this tandoori prawns starter before dinner. I served it with my dhania-pudina chutney, onion rings, and lemon wedges by sprinkling a little chaat masala on its top. Even a sprinkle of lemon juice and chaat masala will also work well.
Is this tandoori prawn spicy?
No, tandoori prawn is not spicy at all though its spiciness is totally up to you. Adding more chili powder in marination or in tandoori masala can make it hot and spicy. But I always maintain the spice level for my kid, you may do the same or you may use less or more spice as per your taste.
Other prawn/shrimp starters from my websites for example,
Grilled prawns, Prawn cutlet, Crispy batter-fried prawns, Butter garlic prawn, Prawn tempura, Prawn ghee roast, Jumbo prawns recipe, etc, even you may try my prawn recipes section for some prawn curries.
Easy tandoori prawns recipe
Prep time: 15 mins
Cooking time: 15 mins
Total time: 30 mins
Served for: 3 people
Course: Starters
Cuisine: Indian
Author: Moumita Paul
Ingredients of tandoori prawns
For the first marination
- 300 gms White or Tiger Prawns
- 1/2 lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp red chilli powder
- 1 tsp vegetable oil
- 1/4 tsp salt
For the second marination
- 1/2 tsp ginger paste
- 1/2 tsp garlic paste
- 3/4 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
- 1/4 tsp black pepper powder
- 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
- 1/2 tsp homemade tandoori masala
- 1/4 tsp chaat masala
- 1 tbsp curd/yogurt
- 1/4 tsp black salt
- 1/8 tsp red food color (optional)
- 2 1/2 tsp mustard oil
- 1 tsp besan/gram flour
- 1 tsp ghee
For grilling
- 4-5 tbsp butter
Equipment required
- Grilled pan or plain tawa
- Roti grill jali
- Skewers(wooden or iron)
Step by step Instructions
How to make tandoori prawns recipe
Preparation
How to clean prawns
- Take the prawns, take out its head, cut its shell along its back except for the tail portion, and take out its vein.
- Wash and thoroughly clean the prawns, make them dry. Keep it in a mixing bowl.
Marinade prawns
- First, Marinade the prawns with 1/2 lemon juice, chilli powder, vegetable oil and mix it together, cover the bowl with a plate and keep it aside for 30 mins.
- After 30 mins, again marinade the prawns with ginger-garlic paste, curd, or yogurt, Kashmiri chilli powder, black pepper, turmeric powder, chaat masala, black salt, special homemade tandoori masala(to check the recipe click on my tandoori chicken recipe), salt, and mustard oil. Marinate the prawns for at least 1 hr by covering the bowl.
- After an hour, lastly, add besan or gram flour with the marinated prawns and mix it well.
- Then take the soaked skewers( soaked for 3-4 hours) and put the prawns one by one into the skewer. For a wooden skewer, don’t put more than 3-4 prawns in one skewer. And don’t use the excess gravy of the marination.
- Once all the prawn skewers are ready, keep them aside.
How to grill tandoori prawns
- Heat the grill pan/tawa, add butter, let it melts down, and use a brush to spread the butter all over the pan.
- Put the prawn skewers on the pan and let it cook in the butter.
- After 4-5 mins turn the prawns and let the other side cook for about 4 more mins.
- Once the prawns cooked, then remove the pan from the gas. Take a piece of charcoal and place it on the direct flame of gas, let it get burnt. Place the burning charcoal into a small bowl(steel/aluminum/ brass/ copper bowl) kept in the grilled pan, add a teaspoon of ghee to the burning charcoal, and let the smoke comes out of the coal.
- Once the smokes start coming, then immediately cover the pan with a big plate. Let the smokey flavor infused into the prawns for about 10 mins.
- For grilling the prawns, first put a roti grill jali on the gas stove flame. Then put the prawn skewers on it and grease it with some butter which is still left in the grill pan.
- Grill the prawns from both sides by nicely greasing them with butter.
- When the charred or grilled effect is visible on the prawns, indicates it is done. Then stop grilling and remove it from the flame. As shown in the picture below.
- Restaurant-style smokey grilled tandoori prawns are ready. Serve it hot with salads and green chutney(click here for the recipe), by sprinkling lemon juice and chat masala on its top and enjoy with your family.
Tips
- Don’t put the prawns in the direct flame for a long time. Otherwise, the prawns will lose their juiciness even get dry, hard, and chewy.
- For using wooden skewers must soak in water. It will prevent the skewers from getting burnt while grilling the prawns on the direct flame.
