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Prawn Cakes

October 15, 2008 in Recipes

(Eight 3-oz. cakes)

These prawn cakes are perfect served as an appetizer or a first course. The flavor is so good, no sauce is necessary.  It ia a little overkill for the delicate flavour of spot prawns but

3 lbs. BC spot prawns

1½ T. Hunan red chile sauce (available in Asian section of supermarkets)

4 eggs

2 T. chopped parsley

2 tsp. lime juice

4 T. ranch dressing

1¾ cup panko bread crumbs

1 T. butter

Steps: Put 2 quarts of water into a 4-quart pot, add 2 T. salt, and bring to boil. Add the prawns and cook for 2 minutes. Remove the pot from heat, drain the contents in a colander; set aside the prawns to cool. Remove the tails; discard the body. Peel the tails and remove the black vein. (Cleaned shrimp should yield about 1 pound). Coarsely chop the shrimp meat and set aside.

Put the chile sauce, eggs, parsley, lime juice and ranch dressing into a medium mixing bowl; mix well using a wire whisk. Add the shrimp meat, then panko. Mix well. Let the shrimp mixture rest for ½ hour before forming the shrimp cakes. To form the cakes, divide the mixture into eight equal balls, press each into a flattened cake; set aside on a large plate.

Melt the butter in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the prawn cakes to the pan (do not crowd the pan, do in batches). Cooking each cake 3 minutes, then turn and cook it 3 minutes more. The cakes will be golden brown when done. Serve immediately.

Garganelli Pasta with Spot Prawns

August 5, 2008 in Recipes

Garganelli Pasta with Spot Prawns and a
Lemon-and-Thyme Butter Sauce
by Rob Feenie
from Lumière
(Ten Speed Press, 2002)
Serves 4

This dish was invented one night when I was craving some pasta, and it quickly went on the menu. The pasta is just coated rather than swimming in sauce. Serve this meal with a light Macon Chardonnay or a New Zealand Chardonnay.

convert Ingredients
2 1/2 cups garganelli or penne pasta
Olive oil

Sauce
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1/4 cup dry white wine
4 sprigs thyme, plus 2 sprigs with leaves removed
1 teaspoon heavy cream (optional)
1/4 pound unsalted butter (1/2 cup)
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon fine lemon zest

Pasta Glaze
1 cup chicken stock
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tomato, peeled, seeded and finely chopped
1 tablespoon chopped chives
2 tablespoons julienned flat-leaf parsley
1 teaspoon fine minced lemon zest

Prawns
12 large prawns, peeled
1 tablespoon grapeseed oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1/4 teaspoon minced garlic
1 small shallot, minced

Method

Prepare the Pasta
1. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the pasta to al dente stage. Strain without rinsing the pasta. Toss with a small amount of olive oil. Spread on a flat baking sheet to air dry-this step allows the starch to remain on the pasta, which makes sauces cling better. You can do this ahead of time and store the pasta in resealable plastic bags.

Prepare the Sauce
1. In a small pot, combine vinegar, wine and the 4 sprigs thyme. Reduce to a syrupy consistency. Remove thyme sprigs. Whisk in cream-this step will prevent the sauce from separating. Remove from heat and whisk in butter a bit at a time. If sauce cools too much, return to low heat, but do not let it boil. When butter is incorporated, add lemon juice and zest along with thyme leaves to mixture. Season with salt. Keep warm.

Prepare the Pasta Glaze
1. In a large sauté pan over medium heat, reduce stock by half. Whisk in butter. Add the pasta and toss to warm through. Add tomato, chives, parsley and lemon zest, and season to taste with salt and freshly ground white pepper.

Prepare the Prawns
1. Season prawns with salt. In a nonstick frying pan, heat the oil over medium-high heat. When the pan is lightly smoking, add the prawns and quickly sauté. When prawns are pink on one side, add butter, garlic and shallot. Turn prawns and continue sautéing until cooked through. Remove from pan and keep warm.

Assemble
1. Over low heat, add the pasta and 1/4 cup of the lemon and thyme sauce to the prawn juices. Toss until thoroughly warmed. Divide among 4 large bowls. Place 3 prawns on top of the pasta. Drizzle warm sauce on top of the prawns and around the plate.

Fire Roasted Prawns with Habanero and Toasted Garlic Vinaigrette

August 4, 2008 in Recipes

SERVES: 4
ingredients

VINAIGRETTE

  • 6 garlic cloves
  • 1 cup pure olive oil
  • 1/2 fresh habañero or Scotch Bonnet chile, chopped
  • 1/4 cup fresh lime juice
  • 2 tablespoons water
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
  • Salt and pepper, freshly ground

BC SPOT PRAWNS

  • 16 prawns, heads and shell on
  • Olive oil
  • Salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
directions
  1. Place garlic and olive oil in a small saucepan, cook over low heat until lightly golden brown. Remove the garlic from the oil and place in a blender. Reserve the oil and let cool slightly.
  2. Add the habañero, lime juice, water and honey to the garlic in the blender and blend until smooth. With the motor running, slowly add 1/2 cup of the garlic-infused oil and blend until emulsified. Add the cilantro and blend for 5 seconds. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
  3. Cook the prawns. Heat the grill to high. Brush the prawns with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill the prawns for 2 to 3 minutes per side until slightly charred and crusty and just cooked through. Remove the prawns to a platter and immediately drizzle with the vinaigrette and sprinkle with the chopped cilantro.

Grilled Spot Prawns with Crispy Shaved Vegetables

August 4, 2008 in Recipes

ACTIVE TIME: 30 MIN
TOTAL TIME: 1 HR 30 MIN
SERVES: 8
Pacific Coast spot prawns, named for the distinctive white spots on their reddish-brown shells, have an unbelievably sweet, delicate flavor and firm, meaty texture. Since they can be hard to find, you can substitute almost any kind of jumbo head-on shrimp. You can even use big, fresh sardines (Japanese iwashi are the best); just debone them and grill them quickly over high heat.

ingredients
  • 12 large spot prawns or jumbo shrimp
  • 12 asparagus tips (2 inches long)
  • 16 baby orange and yellow carrots with 1/2 inch of the green stems attached, peeled
  • 4 baby turnips with 1/2 inch of the green stems attached, peeled
  • 4 small red radishes with 1/2 inch of the green stems attached, peeled
  • 1 small red onion
  • 1 Kirby or Japanese cucumber, halved and seeded
  • 1/2 cup celery leaves
  • 1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves
  • 8 tarragon leaves
  • 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for brushing
  • 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
  • Salt and freshly ground pepper
directions
  1. Using a pair of kitchen scissors, cut down the middle of the backs of the prawn shells. Leave the shells on and pull out the central vein.
  2. Fill a large bowl with ice water. Using a mandolin-style slicer, and holding the vegetables lengthwise, very thinly slice the asparagus tips, carrots, turnips, radishes, red onion and cucumber directly into the ice water bath. Add the celery, parsley and tarragon leaves and refrigerate until the vegetables are crisp, at least 30 minutes or up to 1 hour.
  3. Light a grill. In a small bowl, mix the 1/2 cup of olive oil with the lemon juice and zest. Season the dressing with salt and pepper. Drain the vegetables and herbs and dry thoroughly in a salad spinner. Wrap the vegetables and herbs in paper towels and keep in the refrigerator.
  4. Brush the prawns with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill the prawns over a medium-hot fire until just cooked through, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a platter and let rest for 5 minutes.
  5. In a large bowl, toss the vegetables and herbs with half of the dressing. Arrange the vegetables on 8 plates. Halve each prawn lengthwise through the shell. Top each salad with 3 prawn halves, drizzle with the remaining dressing and serve.