Buttery white bread topped with juicy fiery masala shrimp. A simplistic yet an elegant appetizer. These toasties are so wonderful with some drinks as starters or even as a snack anytime of the day. They are a blast of textures – crisped bread, succulent shrimp and fiery bite of green chillies.
I make the shrimp topping north indian style in a onion tomato ginger garlic masala but take this an as idea and cook your shrimp any way you like. On different occasions, I have tried south indian style with curry leaves and desiccated coconut as well as goan style with little kokum. If you have sea food lovers in the house these flavorful toasties will be a huge hit.
I wanted to use small or medium shrimp but could not find any so I used large sized.If you use a larger size shrimp as well, cut it up in bite size pieces. The recipe is pretty simple and quick. Make sure that the vegetables are finely chopped since the cooking times is not too long. Also if you are using frozen shrimp, thaw them properly and make sure that they are dry before adding to the pan.
Recipe
Ingredients (Makes 12 toasties)
- 2-3 tbsp oil
- 3 tbsp finely chopped onion
- 3 fat garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1 tbsp fresh ginger, finely chopped
- 1 large tomato, finely chopped
- 2-3 green chillies(or to taste)
- 2 tsp tomato paste (or use 1 tbsp tomato puree)
- 1/2 tsp cumin powder
- 1 tsp coriander powder
- pinch of sugar
- 18-20 large size raw shrimp, deveined and tail removed (cut into bite size pieces or if you can find smaller sized shrimp, use those)
- 1 tbsp chopped cilantro
- 1 tbsp toasted bread crumbs
- Lemon juice to taste
- Salt to taste
- 3 white bread slices (sides removed and cut into quarters)
- 2-3 tbsp melted butter (to brush on bread)
Notes
- If you are using frozen shrimp, thaw them properly and make sure to pat them dry before adding to the pan. we dont want any extra liquid while cooking.
- Add chilli flakes instead of green chillies if you wish.
Method
In a pan, heat up the oil. Add onions, ginger and garlic to the oil all at once and saute for 2 minutes on medium heat. We dont want to brown these but the raw smell should go away. Add the chopped tomatoes, tomato paste and green chilies next along with the spice powders & sugar. On medium heat saute for 4-5 minutes, stir a few times in between to make sure nothing is sticking to the pan. Let cook till the tomatoes cook down and you see little oil separating on sides of pan.
In the mean time, place the bread quarters on a baking tray and liberally brush with butter. Toast in a preheated 375F oven for 6-8 minutes until the bread is golden.
Once the masala has cooked nicely, lower the heat and add the shrimp and salt. Gently mix so that all the shrimp is coated in masala and let cook for 3-4 minutes till the shrimp are white and cooked through. Dont rush cooking the shrimp else they will turn rubbery. Cook and make sure that ALL the liquid has dried and the shrimp are coated in masala.
Switch off the stove, mix in the lemon juice, chopped cilantro and bread crumbs. You can add a pinch of garam masala as well if you wish.
Spoon the shrimp on toasted bread. Add few cilantro, green chillies or scallions and serve warm.
Enjoy!
