Vietnamese-style spicy prawns

---

..after..

Before the coconut milk

Marinading

This recipe is really an excuse to use up some odds and ends from my last visit to the Chinese wholesaler. It was to be a barbecue dish but there is too much good sauce that would be wasted on a barbecue.

This was an absolute success. Glad I made detailed notes as this will be repeated. Spicy without being too hot, sweet, without being sickly, fragrant and very tasty. It's very quick to cook too. [piggy-pigs - we had this for 2 as prawns were 2 for 1!]

Ingredients

• 1 medium onion, chopped finely
• 2 tablespoons of ghee
• 400g king prawns, peeled and deveined
• 1 can of coconut milk

Marinade

• 1 x 170g can 'Amocan' seasoned shrimp paste (Sambal Udang Kering)
• 2.5 cm fresh ginger root, peeled and julienned
• 5 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
• Juice and yest of 2 limes
• 2 tablespoons of jaggery
• Splash of nam pla
• Splash of light soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon of crushed chipotles, including seeds. Not very Vietnamese, but added for the smoky flavour. The sambal is already quite hot
• 4 or 5 whole star anise 'flowers'

Garnish

• Handful of spring onions, chopped
• Coriander leaves, chopped

Method

1. If the jaggery is hard, soften by adding a little water and microwaving for a few seconds.
2. Mix the marinade ingredients together and whisk so the sugar is dissolved and combined into the marinade.
3. Add the prawns, stir and refrigerate for 3 or 4 hours if you are able.
4. Heat the ghee in a wok and fry the onions gently for 5 minutes.
5. Add the prawns and marinade and heat for 5 minutes, stirring often.
6. Pour in the coconut milk and heat for another 5 minutes.
7. Serve sprinkled with chopped spring onions and coriander leaves.

Serving suggestion

Serve with plain boiled rice.