Super crispy prawns tacos. Fennel slaw + hot sauce.
Ok ok, it is one of the greatest batter recipes. like, the slaw, the tortillas, the hot sauce, are like the cherry on top. These crispy prawns would be, like, so unbelievably great with just some salad leaves, or fries. Ok, definitely the fries. Some tartare, away you go. You get my drift, they’re pretty great.
I always go for corn tortillas though, usually, but I had these, so I said I’d use them. They are softer I guess but corn tortillas have less calories, I also buy the mini ones which means I feel like I’m eating more. Gotta trick that glutenous mind. It would be handy to just not love food sometimes wouldn’t it.
Anyway, I think it’s good that we keep this short, but that I come up with alternatives to the more denser calorie options.
READ THIS POINT: Oh also, keep an eye on your oil. the chilled beer will mean the oil temp will reduce as you add the battered prawns. + you do not want stewed prawns. Crispy prawns pu-lease.
Enough for 2 (or 1 if you’re like me and like a high protein daily intake)
FOR THE SLAW:
1/2 tbsp mayonnaise
zest and juice 1 lime
1 tsp honey
1/8 head white cabbage, thinly sliced
1 small fennel bulb, very thinly sliced
FOR THE PRAWNS:
sunflower oil, for frying
1 tsp coriander seeds
1 tsp fennel seeds
1/2tsp dried oregano
75g plain flour
100g cider
1/2 tsp baking powder
200g raw prawns
to serve:
4 mini flour tortillas, charred
1/2 avocado
pickled red onions
hot sauce
Make your slaw first: whisk together the mayo, lime and honey. Toss the cabbage and fennel into this.
Heat a pot about a third of the way full with oil. Bring to 165c.
Bash the coriander and fennel seeds together. they don’t need to, or do we want them to be super fine. just so the seeds are no longer fully whole, you get me?
Add them to a bowl with the oregano, 50g flour, baking powder and whisk in the cider. In another bowl, toss the prawns into the remaining 25g flour, dunk into the batter and fry for 2-3 minutes until golden, each side, and cooked through. transfer to a plate or bowl or anything lined with kitchen paper to soak up excess oil. Sprinkle with sea salt straight away. Try not to resist, then build your tacos.
What I like to do is scoop the avocado from it’s shell, mash it onto the tortilla with a fork, and top with the rest. Sure, another sprinkle of salt at the end will do no harm.
