Crumbed prawns

My little boy really likes prawns.

Anytime we see prawns in a shop or on a menu, he wants them. We were shopping a few days ago, and he spotted a packet of frozen prawns in the freezer section of the supermarket, so in the trolley they went.

It is summer here, so stone fruit season is in full swing. We had the most beautiful, sweet nectarines in the fruit bowl.

The man of the house suggested I use some of the nectarines and make something a bit different so we could all enjoy this fruit.

So, prawns for the boy and nectarines for the man. What to do? How about coconut-crumbed prawns with a fresh nectarine and avocado salsa? This was so, so yummy to eat. The combination of the crunchy prawns and the soft, sweet nectarines and squishy avocadoes was wonderful. Really fabulous textures and flavours in this recipe.

This would be a real crowd-pleaser to serve as an entree for a dinner party. It was a definite crowd-pleaser for my family as a mid-week dinner. I served this with some fresh bread and a tomato basil mix, goat's cheese and a green salad. And I think I satisfied the boy's prawn craving and the man's nectarine wish.

What you'll need

*Served four as a part of a dinner with salad, cheese and bread

For the prawns
250g prawns - I used cooked, frozen king prawns with the tail removed. You could also do this with green prawns with a tail on.
1 cup fine bread crumbs
1 cup desiccated coconut
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup milk
3/4 cup plain flour
3 cups vegetable oil (for frying the prawns)

For the nectarine salsa recipe, click here.

    

     

What to do

Defrost the prawns, drain off any excess water and dry off on some paper towel.

Prepare three medium-sized bowls; one with the flour, one with the egg and milk mixed together, one with the crumbs and coconut mixed together.

Coat each prawn with the flour, then the egg mixture, then into the crumbs. I used a pair of chop sticks in each bowl for this step so I didn't have to get my fingers all mucky.

Place the crumbed prawns on a clean plate and leave in the fridge until ready to cook them.

When ready to cook, heat two pans and pour half the oil into each. When the oil is hot (you can check by pinching off a little of the crumb from one the the prawns and placing it in the oil to see if it bubbles and goes brown) place the prawns as quickly as possible into the oil to cook. Once light brown on one side, turn and cook on the other side. This process should take about five minutes.

Once cooked, remove from the oil and place on a plate lined with lots of paper towel. Sprinkle with a little salt and serve while hot with the nectarine salsa or just with a simple squeeze of lemon or lime.