Fatima's Fabulous Kitchen

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Seafood Boil with Tandoori Sauce

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If you’ve ever been to The Angry Crab®, The Boiling Crab®, The Broiler®, or any other seafood broil restaurant then you know exactly what this recipe is all about.

I can’t tell you how much I enjoy digging into a big bag of seafood filled with juicy shrimp, meaty crab legs, and soft and sweet mussels coated in a buttery, garlicy, fiery sauce and dipped in lime juice.

I figured I had to try and make it at home. And let me tell ya’, it’s actually pretty easy!

I start off by creating a super flavorful stock using Zatarain’s® Shrimp and Crab and Crawfish Boil seasoning (it is a large packet of assorted spices in cheesecloth that you simply drop into the water), ginger slices, and boillion stock cubes. The point is to infuse flavor into the water– so feel free to add in whatever you have in your pantry – bay leaves, peppercorns, garlic, onions…etc.

For the seafood, I used a mixture of langoustines, shrimp, and mussels. But you can of course use whatever you like. (If you are using crab legs, make sure to steam them instead of boiling!)

 

 

I like to keep my shrimp head-on and shell-on. I find that doing so retains the most flavor. I also find it somewhat oddly satisfying to peel every shrimp as I go. If you’re not a fan, you can of course opt to buying shrimp without the heads.  

 

Alongside my seafood, I boiled some corn and potatoes – both traditional in a Louisiana style boil. You can of course make some Cajun fries on the side as well, that would be absolutely delicious!

 

Being brown, I had to put some sort of Indian twist to this recipe. And so for the sauce, I created a sauce that had cajun elements but more of a tandoori masala flavor. I melted some butter in a pot along with some garlic and added in an array of spices – chili powder, turmeric, paprika, garama masala, onion powder, cumin, coriander, fennel powder, dried methi, amchur powder. (You can find all these spices at your local indo-pak grocery store or the South Asian section of most stores. You can also substitute with pre-made tandoori masala and adjust to taste.)

I then stirred in some yogurt (as is traditional in tandoori masala) and lime juice, giving it brightness and  acidity.

And there you have it! Serve this in either plastic clear bags or on a serving platter with lime wedges on the side. This is a real fun and messy yet absolutely delicious dinner to make for friends!

 

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Seafood Boil with Tandoori Sauce

Ingredients

Seafood Boil

  • 4 lbs shrimp and/or mussels (I used 3 lbs shrimp/langoustine and 1 lb mussels)
  • 3-4 ears of corn
  • 5-6 small red potatoes (you can also make fries on the side instead!)
  • 1 Zatarain's New Orleans Style Shrimp and Crawfish Boil (may substitute with 1 cup of spices tied in cheesecloth)
  • 2-3 boiullian stock cubes (veggie or chicken)
  • 1 piece ginger

Tandoori-Cajun Sauce

  • 2 bulbs garlic (~24 cloves)
  • 2 1/2 sticks butter
  • 1 tbsp yogurt
  • 1 tsp turmeric
  • 3 tsp chili powder (to taste)
  • 2 tsp paprika
  • 3/4 tsp garam masala
  • 1 tsp onion powder
  • 3/4 tsp cumin
  • 3/4 tsp coriander
  • 3/4 tsp fennel powder
  • 3/4 tsp ginger powder
  • 1/4 tsp amchur powder (also known as dried mango powder) *optional
  • 3/4 tsp dried methi leaves
  • 3/4-1 tsp salt (or to taste)
  • juice of lime (to taste)
  • 1/4 tsp sugar

Instructions

  1. Clean your seafood. Wash grit and dirt away thoroughly. For mussels throw away any that are open or cracked.

  2. In a large pot of water add Zatarain's Shrimp and Crawfish and Crab Boil seasoning package, piece of ginger (cut into thick slices), and bouillon cubes. Bring to a boil. (If you cannot find Zatarain's seasoning packet, don't stress. Take a handful of spices - black peppercorns, bay leaves, mustard seeds, cumin seeds, old bay seasoning -  whatever you have in your pantry, and tie into a cheesecloth. The point is that you want to infuse the water with lots of flavor.)

  3. Add in your potatoes and corn. Remove when potatoes are fork-tender.

  4. Once the water starts boiling and the flavors have been infused, add in your seafood. If using different seafoods, add each type separately. Shrimp will only take two-three minutes to cook. You will know when they are done when they curl up and turn pink. Mussels also only take a few minutes - the shells will open up when they are done.

  5. Serve on a platter or in plastic bags combined with sauce.

Tandoori Sauce

  1. In a small pot, add in butter and garlic. Allow the butter to melt and the garlic to cook.

  2. Turn the heat on low and add in spices. Mix well and turn off the heat. (Be careful - if you leave the spices on the heat for too long, they will burn!)

  3. Stir in the yogurt and serve right away with seafood.