During the Spring Festival, fish and prawns are always a must-have on the dining table. Prawns are one of the most common types of shrimp in daily life. As time goes by, there have been many new and delicious ways to cook large prawns. The finished dishes are fresh, tender, and crispy, suitable for various tastes.
Cooking Large Prawns: Braised Large Prawns in Oil
Ingredients Needed
500 grams of large prawns, 100 milliliters of oil, 60 grams of sliced green onions, 25 milliliters of rice wine, 15 grams of ginger slices, 4 grams of salt, 30 grams of sugar, 15 milliliters of sesame oil, 40 milliliters of water.
Steps and Methods
1. Remove the prawn whiskers and spears, make a small cut at the head near the spear, and remove the sandbag. Cut along the back from just behind the head to the tail and remove the intestinal thread. Clean the prawns and drain them.
2. Heat oil in a wok, then add the green onions and ginger slices. Stir-fry until they change color and become fragrant.
3. Add the large prawns and stir-fry. Use a spatula to press the prawns to release their oil. Add rice wine, salt, sugar, and water. Bring to a boil, then cover.
4. Simmer over low heat for about 10 minutes, then increase the heat to thicken the sauce. Once it thickens, drizzle with sesame oil and turn off the heat.
Tips
1. In this recipe for braised large prawns in oil, since it's an oil-braised dish, you need to use more oil.
2. Control the simmering time properly. The prawns must be thoroughly cooked to absorb the flavors. If the prawns are smaller, reduce the simmering time accordingly.
Cooking Large Prawns: Dry-Braised Large Prawns
Ingredients Needed
2 large prawns, 3 scallions, 6 garlic cloves, half a piece of ginger, soybean sauce, chicken essence, sugar, cornstarch as needed.
Steps and Methods
1. Remove the prawn spears and legs, and cut open the back with scissors to remove the intestinal thread. Cut the prawn meat into two halves but do not cut through the abdomen. Pat dry the prawns with kitchen paper and set aside.
2. Separate the white and green parts of the scallions. Chop the white part, ginger, and garlic together, and chop the green part into pieces. Set aside.
3. Heat oil in a wok to 40% heat, then add the prawns. Cook over medium heat until the cool side is dry.
4. Remove the prawns and set aside, pouring out some of the oil.
5. Heat a small amount of oil in the wok, add the chopped scallion, ginger, and garlic, and stir-fry over medium heat until fragrant.
6. Add soybean sauce and stir-fry until fragrant. Add a small amount of water, bring to a boil, then add sugar and chicken essence for seasoning. Add the prawns and pour in rice wine. Maintain a medium heat, and while cooking, use a large spoon to ladle the sauce onto the prawns.
7. After about 10 minutes when the sauce has thickened, reduce the heat to low, add a moderate amount of cornstarch around the edge of the pan, and continuously shake the pan so that the sauce coats the prawns completely. Before removing from the heat, drizzle with a little of the reserved hot oil and sprinkle with the chopped green scallions.
Note
After eating sea prawns, do not consume cold drinks or watermelon within an hour.
How to Make Homemade Large Prawns
Ingredients Needed
500 grams of large prawns, rice wine, salt, sugar, dried chili peppers, ginger slices, vinegar, chopped green onions.
Steps and Methods
1. Clean the prawns. When the oil in the pot is heated to 60% heat, sauté with ginger slices and dried chili peppers, then add the prawns.
2. Add rice wine, rice vinegar, sugar, and chopped green onions, and stir-fry until fragrant.
3. Sauté briefly, then serve.
Tips
Do not eat prawns with certain fruits. Prawns contain abundant proteins and calcium. If consumed with fruits containing tannic acid, such as grapes, pomegranates, hawthorns, and persimmons, it will not only reduce the nutritional value of the proteins but also cause gastrointestinal irritation due to the formation of tannic acid calcium, leading to symptoms such as vomiting, dizziness, nausea, and abdominal pain or diarrhea. To avoid these issues, wait at least 2 hours before consuming these fruits after eating seafood.