Is there nothing quite as delightful as plump delicious morsels of fresh marinated prawns on the palate? It’s quite possible one of the most perfect starts to a wine dinner.
The beauty of this recipe is its simplicity and versatility. You can serve 6 prawns as a full entrée, or pair 3 with a little Tasmanian Smoked Ocean Trout and Dill Crème as we did for the Wine Matchmaker Glen Eldon Wine Dinner.
The prawns were the runner-up pairing of the night with the 2012 Riesling with the Trout being the winner when paired with the 2005 Museum Riesling. More on that shortly.
The genius in this recipe is the lemon zest. Even if you’re a lemon fiend like I am it’s important not to use lemon juice in this recipe as it will continue to cook the prawns and make them dry. It will also fight with the acid levels in the wine and detract from the pairing. The lemon zest is enough, truly!
It’s best to make this recipe the day before and leave it in the fridge overnight to marinade. Take the prawns out 15 minutes before service to take the chill off a little – they’ll be so much sweeter!
Ingredients
24 fresh green King Prawns, peeled but with the tail on
1 birdseye chilli, finely chopped
Zest of half a lemon, finely grated
Olive Oil
Sea salt
Pepper
Method
- Bring 2.5 litres of water to the boil, add 2 tablespoons of sea salt.
- Add prawns to boiling water.
- Cook for 3-4 minutes and be careful not to over cook them. The prawns are done when they float to the top of the water.
- Remove prawns from the boiling water and place in a bowl of iced water to stop them cooking.
- Drain prawns and place to one side
- In a separate bowl mix a little salt, pepper, lemon zest, chilli and a small quantity of olive oil.
- Add the prawns and marinate for at least 4 hours, or overnight in the fridge
Time: 10 minutes
Serves: 4 as an entrée
Best Wine Match: 2012 Glen Eldon Eden Valley Riesling
See the Wine Matchmaker’s Review of this wine here.
By : Sigrid de Castella (AKA Mrs Wine Matchmaker)