Sri Lankan Prawn Curry (Isso Curry)
Sweet prawns simmered in spiced coconut gravy with the salty depth of dried shrimp. Twenty minutes from start to plate.
Method
- 1
Soak the dried baby shrimp in a small bowl of warm water for 5 minutes. Drain, give them a quick rinse, and roughly chop them. This step rehydrates them and removes excess salt.
- 2
Peel the prawns, leaving the tails on if you like the look. Toss with a pinch of salt, half the turmeric, and 1/2 tsp curry powder. Set aside.
- 3
Heat the coconut oil in a wide pan or shallow casserole over medium heat. Add the cinnamon, cardamom, curry leaves and rampe. Wait 15 seconds for fragrance, then add the onion, garlic, and ginger.
- 4
Cook the onions for 5-6 minutes, stirring often, until soft and starting to caramelise at the edges.
- 5
Add the chopped dried baby shrimp. Stir for 1 minute — the smell will hit you. This is what makes Sri Lankan prawn curry different from the Indian version.
- 6
Stir in the remaining turmeric, curry powder, and chilli powder. Cook for 30 seconds to bloom the spices.
- 7
Add the diced tomato. Cook for 2 minutes until it breaks down into the spice base.
- 8
Pour in the water and add the goraka. Simmer for 5 minutes — the base should look like a chunky paste.
- 9
Pour in the coconut milk. Reduce to the lowest heat and bring to a bare simmer. Do not boil.
- 10
Add the prawns. They cook fast — 3-4 minutes is all they need. As soon as they've turned pink and curled, they're done. Over-cooked prawns are rubbery.
- 11
Squeeze in the lime juice. Taste — adjust salt carefully (the dried shrimp may have provided most of it already).
- 12
Off the heat, rest for 2 minutes. Serve over basmati or red rice with a side of pol sambol.
What is isso curry?
"Isso" is the Sinhala word for prawn. Isso curry is the dish you'd order on a Sri Lankan coastal holiday — coconut-rich, gently spiced, and almost always served at room temperature alongside rice and a few sambols. Twenty minutes start to finish, which is faster than most takeaways.
What separates Sri Lankan prawn curry from its Indian cousin is one ingredient: dried baby shrimp added to the spice base. It sounds like a strange addition (why add shrimp to a prawn curry?) but it's the secret to the dish. The dried shrimp dissolve into the gravy as it simmers, giving the curry an oceanic depth you can't replicate any other way. Without them you've got a perfectly nice prawn curry; with them you've got isso curry.
The dried baby shrimp secret
Sri Lankans use dried baby shrimp the way Italians use anchovies — as a flavour-base building block, not as a featured ingredient. The dried shrimp give:
- Umami depth — concentrated seafood flavour without overwhelming
- Salty backbone — they're naturally salty, so you don't need to add much more
- Body — they dissolve into a slightly thicker, more luscious gravy
Two tablespoons in this recipe is enough for a curry that serves four. A 100g pack from Ceylo gives you roughly 15-20 curries' worth. Stored in an airtight container in a cool dry cupboard, dried baby shrimp keep for 6+ months.
Buying good prawns
The prawns matter as much as the spices. Look for:
- Raw, not pre-cooked. Pre-cooked prawns turn rubbery the second they hit the hot gravy.
- Shell-on if possible. The shells release flavour as they simmer. Most UK supermarkets sell shell-on raw king prawns frozen — perfectly good.
- Devein them. That dark line running along the back is the digestive tract. Slice along the back with a small knife, scoop it out. Takes 30 seconds.
- Size matters less than freshness. Medium king prawns work; small tigers work; even shell-on frozen river prawns work. What you can't use is the small precooked supermarket prawns sold in tubs.
Don't overcook the prawns
The single most common mistake in prawn curry is leaving the prawns in the gravy too long. Prawns cook in 3-4 minutes. They go from pink and curled to rubbery and tasteless in another minute. Add them at the very end, watch them like a hawk, kill the heat the moment they're pink.
If you're making this curry to eat later, take it off the heat at the prawn stage and reheat gently when you're ready to eat. Don't leave the prawns sitting in hot gravy.
How to serve
Isso curry is a "centre of the plate" curry — bigger flavour than chicken, more delicate than dry fish. A typical serving:
- White basmati rice (or red rice if you can get it)
- Isso curry as the main protein
- A dhal curry (parippu) to mop up gravy
- A green vegetable — cabbage mallum or kale stir-fry
- Maldive fish chips pol sambol — the classic seafood partner
- Papadum
Isso curry also makes a brilliant pasta sauce. Toss with spaghetti and a squeeze of lime — not traditional, but excellent.
Variations
- Isso curry with pumpkin. Add a cup of diced pumpkin at step 7. It sweetens the curry beautifully and makes it more substantial.
- Devilled prawns. Drain off most of the gravy, stir-fry the prawns with diced onion, green chilli and a splash of dark soy. Sri Lankan restaurant favourite.
- Coconut milk-free. Replace the coconut milk with another 200ml water and add a tablespoon of grated coconut blended into a paste. Lighter, more concentrated curry good with pittu.
- Hot devilled isso. Triple the chilli, add a chopped fresh red chilli at the end. The version every Sri Lankan beach shack serves.
Storage
The curry keeps refrigerated for 2 days but the prawns lose their bounce after that. If you know you'll have leftovers, prepare the gravy ahead of time, store the prawns raw, and only combine them when you're reheating to eat.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use cooked prawns? Yes, but reduce the cooking time to 1 minute — just enough to warm them through. They'll be slightly tougher than raw-and-cooked-in-the-curry but still good.
Is isso curry spicy? Moderately — about a 4 out of 10 by default. Easy to make milder (halve the chilli powder) or spicier (double it and add a fresh chilli).
What's the difference between Sri Lankan prawn curry and Indian prawn curry? The dried baby shrimp in the spice base, the goraka (instead of tamarind), and the use of rampe and curry leaves. The result is more oceanic and less sweet than most Indian prawn curries.
Where can I buy dried baby shrimp in the UK? Ceylo ships Baby Shrimp 100g across the UK with Royal Mail Tracked 48 delivery. Hand-cleaned and sun-dried from Sri Lankan coastal fisheries.
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