Prawns for Horst

A few years ago my uncle came over to Melbourne from New Zealand. He is a man of refined, specific tastes, and he is very difficult to please. The weekend my uncle was in Melbourne, he wanted one thing, and one thing only. Prawns.

I managed to spectacularly fail in fulfilling this request. The poor guy walked past many a menu, little pink prawn tails calling to him – “suck me”, “savour me”, while I attempted to show off my skill in finding the hottest newest restaurant, all the time ignoring my darling uncle’s one request.

My uncle left Melbourne a defeated man. He’d enjoyed many meals, one of which he declared was one of the best he’d ever had, but none contained prawns. If he came over again, the recipe below is what I’d cook for him.

Prawns. Sweet, juicy prawns. Prawns are the highlight of summer. I don’t eat prawns in winter. They just don’t seem to suit a cold night, huddled over a glass of something red and robust. They suit sun, warm evenings, cold drinks and good company.

Prawns for Horst with chilli lime aioli

Ingredients

Raw prawns  – I use banana prawns – you should buy enough for at least 4 per person

Marinade

Olive oil

1 clove of finely chopped garlic

1 chilli finely chopped

2 tablespoons grated ginger

Finely grated rind of one lime

A splash of fish sauce

Chilli lime mayonnaise

3 egg yolks

Salt & Pepper

The juice of one lime (or a little more to taste)

Pinch of sugar

2 cloves of garlic finely chopped

1 chilli finely chopped

Finely grated rind of one lime

250 mls canola oil (or a mix of canola and olive oil)

Method (Prawns)

1. Peel the prawns. To do so, first remove the head, then the legs and shell. I leave the tail on, but it’s up to you.  You may also need to devein the prawn if the vein didn’t slip out when you took off the head. To do so, use a small sharp knife to make a slit along the back of the prawn and then gently remove the dark vein. I usually wash the prawns in cold water once I’ve removed the shells just to get rid of anything gross left over.

2. Mix together the marinade ingredients and then pour the marinade over the prawns and refrigerate until you are ready to cook.

3. When you are ready, cook in a fry pan or on a BBQ for a few minutes until firm and pink.

4. Serve with the lime and chilli mayo.

(Tip, if you are serving the prawns as a main and have cooked them in a fry pan, you can deglaze the pan with a splash of soy sauce and some lemon or lime juice, cook that for a minute or two and pour over as an additional sauce).

Method (Mayonnaise)

Method 1 (hand mixing)

1. Place the egg yolks, lime juice, sugar, salt and pepper in a large bowl (best not to use a metal bowl). Whisk the mixture until it begins to thicken.

2. Pour a few drops of the oil into the egg-yolk mixture and whisk until well combined.

3. Whisk the remaining oil in very very slowly (like a couple of drops at a time or in a really thin stream if someone is helping) until all gone.

4. If the mayo separates or curdles, relax.  It’s not all lost, you’ll just end up with more than you hoped because you need to do step one again, and then incorporate the separated mixture slowly into the egg and lime mix. Once combined again, keep going with the rest of the oil.

5. Once all the oil has been incorporated, taste the mixture and adjust the seasoning with extra lime juice, salt and pepper if that floats your boat.

Method 2 (food processor)

1. Place the egg yolks, lime juice, sugar and salt and pepper into the food processor and blend until combined and starting to thicken.

2. With the motor running slowly, gradually add the oil to the mixture in a thin steady stream, occasionally stopping to scrape down the side of the blender with a spatula, until the mixture is thick.

3. Once all the oil has been incorporated, taste the mixture and adjust the seasoning with extra lime juice and salt and pepper if that floats your boat.

To serve

Serve the prawns and mayo as finger food (with the prawns being dipped into the mayo – that’s where the tails come in. They give you something to hold onto). To make it look pretty, garnish the plate with a few sprigs of coriander.

Or, you can make a meal of it and serve them with some brown rice and a salad of thinly sliced cucumber (I peel mine with a potato grater), capsicum, red onion and lots of fresh coriander. Drizzle with some lemon juice, olive oil and salt & pepper and Bob (or Horst) is your uncle.