Category Archives: prawn

Sweet Chilli Prawns

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This is another quick and easy meal – I whipped it up within about 15 minutes of getting home tonight.

Serves 4

500g green prawn cutlets (that’s the peeled ones with the tail still intact)
200g snow peas, trimmed
1 medium onion, peeled and cut into segments
1 red capsicum, sliced into thin strips
1 bunch of baby Bok Choy, sliced into approx 4cm lengths
1 tbs lime juice
1 tbs soy sauce
1 tsp crushed garlic
1 tsp minced chilli
2 tbs sweet chilli sauce
1 tbs peanut oil

Combine lime juice, soy sauce, sweet chilli sauce, chilli and garlic in a bowl and add prawns. Mix well and put aside to marinate while you prepare the veggies. Heat half the oil in a wok over medium-high heat. Drain the prawns (reserve the liquid) and cook for 2-3 minutes until pink. Remove them from the pan and set aside. Heat the remaining oil in the wok and add onion, cooking for 1 minute. Add the other veggies and stir-fry for about 2 minutes, or until they’re cooked to your liking. Return the prawns to the pan, adding the reserved marinade. Cook 1-2 minutes until simmering.

Serve with steamed rice or extra veggies. I added asparagus to mine (of course), and also some coriander leaves.

Linguine Marinara

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I saw a great-looking marinara mix at the supermarket fish counter the other day, and had a hankering for a pasta dish. So I made this recipe up as I went. You could buy shellfish and white fish fillets separately if you like and make up your own mix.

Serves 2

400g good-quality marinara mix
4-6 green king prawns, shelled but with tails left on
2 tsp olive oil
1 medium onion, finely, chopped
1 tsp crushed garlic
1 small red chilli, finely chopped
400g can crushed tomatoes
4-6 sun-dried tomatoes finely sliced (not the ones packed in oil)
A handful of chopped basil
Linguine or other pasta
Extra torn basil leaves for garnish
Parmesan cheese

Heat the oil in a non-stick pan and cook the onion, garlic and chilli until onion is tender. Add canned tomatoes, sundried tomatoes and basil, stir and bring to the boil. Add 1/2 a cup or so of water. Simmer for 5-10 minutes, until slightly reduced, then add the seafood. Cover and simmer for a further 5-8 minutes or so, turning the prawns and other shellfish to make sure they cook evenly. When prawns are pink, it’s ready to serve. Have some water boiling and cook the pasta while the sauce is simmering.

Place 1 cup of the cooked pasta in each bowl and divide the sauce between them. Make sure the prawns are on top so it looks posh. :o ) Sprinkle extra basil over the top and add a teaspoon or two of grated parmesan and some black pepper.

Vietnamese Prawn Cakes

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I found this recipe in the January issue of Better Homes & Gardens. I’ve made a few minor changes….


Makes 2 pretty generous serves

500g peeled green prawns
1 bunch of coriander with roots
1 tbs lime juice
1 tbs fish sauce
1 tbs grated palm sugar
1 small red chilli, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed

Cut off the roots and 4cm of the stalks of the coriander. Wash thoroughly under running water and pat dry with paper towel. Reserve the leaves to use in the salad. Chop roots and stems roughly. Put prawns in a food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Add chopped coriander, lime juice, fish sauce, sugar, chilli and garlic. Process until prawns are finely chopped and all ingredients are well combined. Transfer to a large bowl. Divide mixture into 8 portions. With wet hands, shape into patties.

Line a steamer with a layer of baling paper (poke some holes in it to let the steam through) and place 3-4 prawn cakes in a single layer on the paper. Steam for 8-10 minutes or until firm and cooked through. Transfer to a plate and cook remaining prawn cakes. Heat a chargrill or barbecue plate and cook prawn cakes for about a minute on each side until browned. Serve with dipping sauce and salad.

Dipping sauce

Juice of 2 limes
2 tbs fish sauce
1 tbs grated palm sugar
1 small red chilli, finely chopped

Mix all ingredients together and serve in small bowls.

The salad was supposed to be a green papaya salad….I couldn’t get a papaya at short notice, so had to improvise. I think this is a better recipe anyway:


Asian-style mango salad

1 medium carrot, peeled
½ a Lebanese cucumber
½ a yellow capsicum
2-3 spring onions, finely sliced on the diagonal
About a cup of mixed salad leaves
A cup of coriander leaves, loosely packed
1 medium-sized mango

Fish sauce and lime juice to taste for the dressing.

Slice carrot, cucumber and capsicum into long very thin strips, place in a bowl with spring onions, salad leaves and coriander leaves. Dice the mango flesh and add to the bowl, pour combined fish sauce and lime juice over and toss well.

This might sound a bit fiddly, but it was really very easy to make. You could make the salad ahead and refrigerate it (minus the dressing), same with the dipping sauce. The prawn cakes can also be made ahead, steamed and then placed in the fridge till you’re ready to barbecue them.