Curry Shrimp is Jamaica's most popular seafood curry — large shrimp simmered in a fragrant curry sauce of onion, garlic, ginger, scotch bonnet, and Jamaican curry powder (which is heavy on turmeric and allspice). It is the Indian-influenced side of Jamaican cooking, the cousin of curried goat and curry chicken, served over rice.
Curry Shrimp is part of the Indian-Jamaican curry tradition. Indian indentured laborers arrived in Jamaica in the 1840s, bringing curry powder and curry cooking techniques. The Jamaican curry tradition adapted these to local ingredients: goat (curried goat, already in the database), chicken (Jamaican curry chicken, already in the database), and seafood. Jamaican curry powder is distinct from Indian — it is heavier on turmeric (giving a brighter yellow color) and includes allspice (the Jamaican signature spice). Curry shrimp is the quickest of the Jamaican curries (shrimp cook in minutes), making it a weeknight favorite.
A bowl of bright yellow, glossy curry with plump shrimp, flecks of green scallion, and a gentle scotch bonnet warmth. The curry is fragrant with turmeric and allspice; the shrimp are sweet and tender. Spoon it over white rice; the curry coats every grain. It is the quickest, most flavorful Jamaican curry.
Jamaican curry powder is the essential ingredient — it contains turmeric, cumin, coriander, fenugreek, and allspice (the Jamaican addition). The curry base is built by frying the curry powder in oil (this 'toasts' the spices and intensifies the color). The shrimp are added last and cook for only 3-4 minutes (overcooking makes them rubbery). The sauce should be thick enough to coat the shrimp but still spoonable.
Variations
Some add coconut milk; some add potatoes; some use different heat levels; the curry powder brand varies.
On the Palate
Where Curry Shrimp sits in the Jamaican flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 4
How it's made
8 steps · 20 min active + 10 min waiting
- 13 min
Heat 2 tbsp oil in a pan; add 1 diced onion; cook 3 minutes.
- 22 min
Add 4 crushed garlic cloves and 1 thumb grated ginger; cook 2 minutes.
- 31 min
Add 2 tbsp Jamaican curry powder; stir 1 minute until fragrant.
Watch outFry the curry powder in the oil until it darkens and smells toasty and the oil turns deep orange — this blooms the spices; skip it and the curry tastes raw and dusty.
- 43 min
Add 2 diced tomatoes; cook 3 minutes.
- 53 min
Add 500 g large shrimp (peeled); toss in the curry.
- 64 min
Add 100 ml water; simmer 4 minutes until shrimp are pink and cooked.
Watch outSimmer just until the shrimp turn pink and curl — pull them at four minutes; longer and they toughen in the sauce.
- 71 min
Add 1 whole scotch bonnet (pierced) for flavor; 2 chopped scallions.
- 81 min
Season with salt; serve over rice.
