Asma Khan’s Ma’s Prawns

Ma was a formidable person. She came to help my grandmother look after my mother when she was born. When my mother got married, Ma moved to my parents’ flat and was an integral part of our household. We were her family. We all called her Ma, or ‘mother’, which may have seemed strange to outsiders, who probably saw her as a regular ayah or bua (a traditional nursemaid – having a live-in carer to look after the children was a common practice in Indian households who could afford to keep one).

When Ma died, I could not go to her funeral. In the Islamic tradition, my brother carried her down to her grave: this is usually done by a child or relative. Ma would have been pleased to have seen the send-off she got: the local bazaar was closed in her honour and the street outside our house was full of people who came to pay their respects. A lady of substance. This is the prawn dish she always made for me whenever I returned home from England. It’s a simple, heart-warming, no-fuss dish, that only takes 45 minutes or so to make. I eat Ma’s Prawns with plain boiled rice.