Prawn Balchãoबालचाव

Name: Prawn Balchão
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 65 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Goan
Ingredients: 500 g medium prawns, shelled and deveined; 12–15, deseeded for medium heat dried Kashmiri red chillies; 1 tsp cumin seeds — jeera; 1 tsp black peppercorns; 1-inch piece cinnamon stick; 4 whole cloves — laung; 10 cloves garlic; 1-inch piece fresh ginger; ½ cup (or malt vinegar) palm vinegar or coconut vinegar; 2 large, finely sliced onions; ½ tsp turmeric powder; 2 tsp sugar; 4 tbsp oil — coconut preferred; to taste salt

⏱ Prep 20m🍳 Cook 45m🍽 Serves 4🌿 Non-veg

Video: Cuts of life by Chef Ieston (YouTube)

Prawn Balchão is Goa's most intensely flavoured dish — a fiery, tangy, vinegar-laced prawn pickle-curry that belongs as much to the pantry as to the dinner table. Portuguese colonial influence brought the vinegar; Goan cooks answered it with a fierce masala of dried Kashmiri chillies and local coconut or palm vinegar. Balchão improves dramatically over two or three days, which is why Goan households make it in large batches and eat it all week.

📍 Make it in Plano

This recipe is the same everywhere — but where you buy the ingredients and eat the dish is local to you.

Finding Desi spots near Plano…

Ingredients

▪medium prawns, shelled and deveined500 g
▪dried Kashmiri red chillies12–15, deseeded for medium heat
▪cumin seeds — jeera1 tsp
▪black peppercorns1 tsp
▪cinnamon stick1-inch piece
▪cloves — laung4 whole
▪garlic10 cloves
▪fresh ginger1-inch piece
▪palm vinegar or coconut vinegar½ cup (or malt vinegar)
▪onions2 large, finely sliced
▪turmeric powder½ tsp
▪sugar2 tsp
▪oil — coconut preferred4 tbsp
▪saltto taste

🌍 Cooking abroad? Substitutions

Palm vinegar (from coconut palm) and coconut vinegar are available at Filipino or Indian grocery stores and online. Goan cuisine uses both interchangeably. In a pinch, a 50/50 mix of apple cider vinegar and white wine vinegar replicates the mild tanginess. Avoid balsamic.
Kashmiri red chillies give the dish its signature deep colour without extreme heat. They are widely available at Indian grocery stores. Substitute with 8 regular dried red chillies plus 1 tsp smoked paprika for colour.
Coconut oil is traditional in Goa and available everywhere now. If you find its flavour too strong, a neutral oil works fine — the masala is bold enough to dominate.

Method

1Grind the balchão masala: blend Kashmiri chillies, cumin, black pepper, cinnamon, cloves, garlic, and ginger with 4 tbsp palm vinegar to a smooth paste.
2Pat prawns dry with paper towel. Toss with ½ tsp turmeric and a pinch of salt; set aside 10 minutes.
3Heat coconut oil in a heavy pan over high heat. Flash-fry prawns in batches for just 1 minute per side — you want them barely cooked. Remove and set aside.
4In the same pan reduce heat to medium. Add sliced onions and cook 15–18 minutes until deep golden-brown and caramelised — this sweetness is essential.
5Add the ground masala paste; fry stirring constantly for 8–10 minutes until the oil begins to separate and the paste darkens to a deep brick-red.
6Add the remaining vinegar, sugar, and salt. Cook 3–4 minutes, stirring. The masala should be thick and fragrant.
7Add the flash-fried prawns back to the pan; toss to coat thoroughly. Cook 3–4 minutes more — prawns cook through in the spiced vinegar sauce.
8Cool completely before transferring to a glass jar. Balchão keeps refrigerated for up to 2 weeks and improves after 24 hours. Serve at room temperature with steamed rice.

A Desi.Net original recipe · part of our Indian Cuisine library. Confirm details and adjust to taste.