Crocodile Varuvel

Can you believe it.. this is Crocodile?

 

 

Today I had crocodile meat for the first time and mum made a dried curry or Varuvel, so we had Crocodile Varuvel.

My brother brought back two packets two days ago from Sandakan, present from his so called ex.  It resembled chicken when I looked at it, because it was frozen, and so mum decided this morning that she was going to cook it.

I had no clue what crocodile tasted like, the closest I have eaten anything like that was back in Australia when I had Cream of Alligator soup, but it was just a tiny bit and I thought back then it tasted funny.  The alligator flavor was too strong for my liking.  I guess back then it was a new meat so people didn’t know how to prepare it.  I also remember tasting kangaroo meat back then and it was horrible horrible horrible to the power of a trillion. It has improved nowadays though.

So todays endeavour, Crocodile Varuvel.

While I did not help to cook it as I was busy preparing for my class and also to prepare the ingredients for my Suji Cake orders for Diwali, so I left mum and Yus do the work.  I did make a busy body to check and stir it though.  I still felt funny even tasting it because I had this vision of a crocodile in my head and wondered how it was killed. Because surely Mr Croc here did not give himself up!

Once I ate Wild Boar and I found pellets, as in tiny bullets in my mouth! So I was skeptical about crocodile.  The meat  I must say resembled chicken fillets or chicken breast.

Anyhow I found the meat to taste and feel much like pieces of pork. Aunty Mary whom we did not tell what meat it was was convinced that it was pork and wondered why we cooked pork at home.  She did give us ideas of other dishes to cook as she still did not know nor does anyone want to tell her what meat it was.

Here is my Crocodile Varuvel Recipe

1 kg Crocodile Meat or Fillets – boiled with spices and throw away the water to rid of any gamey smell.

Spices:

Cinnamon Sticks    3 or 4

Cardamom   5 or 6

Cloves   10

Star Anise   4

Curry Leaves 20 leaves or more – I like to eat curry leaves

Ingredients to be Food Processed:

Onions   5 large

Ginger   100 gm

Garlic   100 gm

Chillies   5 or 6 depending on the degree of spiciness required

Other Ingredients:

Lemon Grass  3 stalks

Black Pepper

Salt and Sugar

To be made into a Paste:

Curry Powder   4 tbsp

Coriander Powder 1 tbsp

Cumin Powder 1 tsp or a little more

Fennel Powder 1 tsp

Chilly Powder to taste

Dark Soy Sauce – Lots of recipes add this but I’m not a fan of dark sauce

 

Method:

1.  Heat oil and sauté spices. Add in curry leaves.  It should be nice and fragrant.
2. Add in blended ingredients and leave to simmer
3. Add in paste.  Add in water if required and then add in boiled crocodile meat.

4. 

   This is the simmering to drying stage

5. Leave to simmer for about an hour. Season to taste

6. 

   Can you believe that the animal this meat came from could have swallowed you up whole???

7. Cook till meat is tender, and then increase heat to dry the gravy.
8. Add in black pepper powder
9. Cook till mixture is thick and dry.  If the meat is not tender or still has a gamey smell, cook a little longer.
10. Serve with rice or chappatis.

 

 

About these ads