Recipe: King prawns

King prawns with apple chutney

To serve two

 

Six raw king prawns – available fresh or frozen

One red chilli – seeded (if you wish to reduce the heat) and diced

One red onion – diced

Two cloves of garlic – crushed

One red pepper – seeded and diced

One red apple – diced

The zest and juice of one lime

One tablespoon of brown sugar

One tablespoon of golden syrup

A few leaves of fresh basil – torn

A small handful of fresh coriander

Two handfuls of rocket leaves

100g plain flour (optional)

 

To make the apple chutney, place a thick-bottomed pan on the stove and heat as hot as you dare. Put a small amount of cooking oil into the pan and fry the chilli, onion, garlic, red pepper and apple until evenly coloured – it won't take long. Add the lime juice and zest and golden syrup, reducing until a marmalade consistency is achieved. Then, still over the heat, add the sugar, stir and add the basil and coriander at the last moment. Remove from the heat and it can be served hot, cold or even chilled.

 

Peel the prawns and, with a sharp knife, remove the black vein that runs along the back of each. Wash the prawns under cold water and dry.

 

The prawns can then be pan-fried or deep-fired tempura style. To pan-fry, heat a little olive oil in a frying pan and fry until pink. To deep fry, mix ice cold water into the flour until you have a consistency that will coat the back of a spoon. Don't worry if it's slightly lumpy. Dust the prawns with flour, dip them in the batter and deep fry until they float in the oil. Remove, drain and serve on the rocket leaves with the chutney.