Sunday 16 August 2009

Simple Pan Fried Prawns






Ingredients:
1. Prawns - quantity of your choice
2. Good quality sea salt according to taste
3. Oil depending on amount of prawns to be cooked
4. Squeeze of lime - optional

Cooking time: 3 minutes

1. Choose a pan/wok big enough to contain amount of prawns to be pan fried.
2. When pan/wok is hot, add oil, when oil is smoking, add prawns, spread them out in pan/wok. Leave it to cook for about a minute. Add extra oil if necessary.
3. Flip prawns over and continue cooking for about another minute or depending on sizes of prawns.
4. Do not overcook prawns. Prawns are cooked when they turned pink/red or depending on the species.
5. Remove on serving dish, sprinkle good quality sea salt and serve immediately. It's finger licking good and enjoy it as is. No dip no other seasoning required.

Note: If you do not appreciate sucking on the prawn heads and shells, do not discard. They can be used to make a stock to be used at a later date. Freeze them and use as and when required.

Friday 14 August 2009

Hamburger








This is one of the items prepared when I have friends over for BBQ.
It's a great recipe as it freezes very well.

Yield: 10 servings

Ingredients:
One onion, roughly sliced, sauteed gently without browning, add a teaspoon of thyme and a pinch of salt
2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes (optional)
4 tablespoons sour cream or plain yogurt (optional)
3 tablespoons of tomato ketchup
Salt according to taste
1/2 teaspoon coarse black pepper
3 pounds ground beef
1/4 cup finely grated cheese of your choice (optional)
One egg

Method:
1. Combine all ingredients
2. Mix gently. Over kneading will result burger into a paste.
3. Wet hands and mould burgers into desired shapes.
4. Grill or pan fry over medium heat for 4-5 minutes on each side or according to taste.


Note: Adding sour cream to hamburger mixture makes it incredibly moist.
Substitute sour cream for plain yogurt or leave out completely according to taste.

Adding tomato ketchup enhance the burgers better.

After shaping the burgers, leave it in the fridge for at least an hour before cooking.

Serve with a relish or salad of your choice.

Sunday 9 August 2009

Fried Eggs with Prawns









Serves: 4
Prep time 10 mins
Cooking Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients:
1. 4 eggs
2. 10 medium sized prawns or more, peeled, cleaned and patted dry.
3. One teaspoon of warm water
4. Pinch of salt and white pepper according to taste
5. Oil for cooking according to taste

Method:

1. Break the eggs into a bowl with a pinch of salt, white pepper and a teaspoon of warm water but do not mix yet.

2. Heat a small pan/wok until almost smoking. Add three tablespoon of oil, when smoking, add a pinch of salt in work, swirl oil around, add prawns in a single layer. Do not overlap. When slightly pink, flip prawns over and remove from heat. Prawns should still be slightly raw.
Add prawns including any juice into egg mixtures.
3. Wipe wok very clean with kitchen paper towel or rinse wok.

4. When pan is smoking, add remaining oil or more according to taste. Whisk egg mixture gently with a fork. When oil is smoking, add egg mixture. Spread prawns around. Cook for about a minute or when the bottom is slightly brown. Flip eggs over and cook till eggs are just about set.

Remove and serve immediately.

Variations:

Replace the prawns with scallops, barbecued pork or onions, coriander/spring onions according to taste. For this recipe, I just want to taste the prawns and eggs.


Tip: If there is insufficient oil when frying the eggs, drizzle some oil around the edges. Turn eggs only once.