Spot Prawns with Lime and Cilantro
A very meaty chile pepper that is great to add heat to hot pepper jelly or relish. It can also be stuffed or chopped and used in fresh salsas.
In Italy these first are pickled in vinegar brine then stuffed with ingredients like provolone cheese and prosciutto ham. After being stuffed they are marinated with herbs and olive oil.
Ingredients:
1 pound spot prawns, or other large prawns, shell-on
zest of 1 lime
2 limes, juiced
2 teaspoons fish sauce
2 teaspoons sugar
2 cherry hot chiles, thinly sliced
1 cup cilantro, roughly chopped
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
oil
Instructions:
Prepare your prawns: use a pair of kitchen shears to cut through the back of the shell. Cutting through the shell lets you de-vein the prawn easily. In a large bowl, mix together the lime juice, fish sauce and sugar until the sugar is dissolved. Add the zest, chill and cilantro. Taste and season with salt and freshly ground pepper.
Heat up a cast iron over medium-high heat. Add a bit of olive oil to the pan. When hot, add the prawns and cook without moving for 2 minutes. Flip and continue to cook for 1-2 minutes, until pink and firm. Toss the shrimp in the dressing. Enjoy hot.
Adapted from iamafoodblog.com