Szechuan Prawns
De Arbol (Capsicum Annuum) means tree like in Spanish. The plant has thick, upright, woody stems and the chile itself is narrow, curved and bright red in color. Believed to be closely related to the pequin, the De Arbol is thin fleshed, with tannic, smoky, grassy flavor and searing heat. This chile has a heat range of 7.5 on the heat scale of 1-10. De Arbol Chiles are comparable to a Cayenne Pepper. Scoville heat units 15,000 to 30,000.
Suggested Use:
De Arbol is a hot chile and a staple in Southwest kitchens. Add some heat to your next salsa or Mexican dish. Be adventurous and add them to your next stew or chili along with the other spices Add some heat to your next salsa or Mexican dish.
Ingredients:
1 tsp Szechuan pepper
1 tsp white pepper, freshly ground
1 tsp sea salt
1/4 cup canola oil
2 lbs. large prawns, peeled and deveined
6 Tbsp cornstarch
6 garlic cloves, minced
6 dried Asian chiles, crushed (can substitute de Arbol chiles)
2 limes, quartered for garnish
Instructions:
Toast the Szechuan peppercorns in a small dry pan over medium heat, shaking the pan, for about 3 minutes. They will start to smoke and crackle. Remove from the heat into a bowl for cooling.
Grind the Szechuan peppercorns in a spice mil or with a mortar and pestle. Transfer to a bowl and combine with the pepper and salt and set aside.
Place the cornstarch in a bowl, add the prawns and toss. Remove excess cornstarch by shaking the coated prawns in a sieve or strainer. Set aside.
Heat the oil in a wok or large heavy skillet over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking.
Add the prawns to the wok and cook, turning a few times, until pink for 2-3 minutes. Remove shrimp and set aside.
Discard oil, leaving a coating of oil in the wok and return to the heat. Add the garlic and chile peppers and stir for a minute or until lightly browned. Return prawns to the wok and toss the shrimp with the spice mixture until the spices release their fragrance and coat the shrimp about 1 minute.
Serve immediately with jasmine rice and stir-fried vegetables. Use a dash of soy sauce if desired.
Serves 4. Heat Level: Medium Hot
From Chile Peppers by Larry Noggle.