Food, Uncategorized

Beer-battered Prawns with Tomato & Chilli Relish

Recipe from taste.com.au

I’ve been looking for a decent beer batter recipe for a while now, and this has been one of the better ones so far! The trick to not have a fully greasy taste of deep fried seafood is to make sure the oil for deep frying is really hot. This would “seal up” the seafood almost immediately, keeping the grease mostly on the outside of the batter and less absorbed into the seafood you’re cooking.

It also ensures a truly crisp batter with a soft inside. This would only work with seafood, as they take less time to cook. And prawns are incredibly delicious battered, as they have a slightly firmer texture and a distinct seafood taste.. combined with this delicious crunchy batter and this beautifully home made Tomato and Chilli Relish.. this is the ultimate fried food indulgence!

Ingredients (serves 6)

  • 300g (2 cups) self-raising flour
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 x 375ml btl Coopers Original Pale Ale
  • Olive oil or peanut oil, to deep-fry
  • 1kg green prawns, peeled leaving tails intact, deveined
  • Baby rocket leaves, to serve
  • Lemon wedges, to serve 

Tomato and Chilli Relish

  • 1 tbs olive oil
  • 1 red onion, finely chopped
  • 3 long fresh red chillies, finely chopped
  • 60ml (1/4 cup) red wine
  • 1 x 410g can diced tomatoes
  • 45g (1/4 cup, lightly packed) brown sugar
  • 2 tbs red wine vinegar 

Method

  1. Combine the flour and salt in a large bowl. Make a well in the centre. Gradually add the ale, whisking constantly until a smooth batter forms.
  2. To make the chilli & tomato relish, heat the oil in a medium saucepan over low heat. Add the onion and chilli and cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes or until soft. Add the wine and cook for 2 minutes or until the wine reduces slightly. Add the tomato, sugar and vinegar. Simmer, stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes or until the mixture thickens. Set aside to cool.
  3. Add enough oil to a large heavy-based saucepan or wok to reach a depth of 5cm. Heat to 180°C over high heat (when the oil is ready a cube of bread will turn golden brown in 15 seconds).
  4. Holding the prawns by their tails, dip 4 prawns, 1 at a time, into the batter to coat. Add to the oil and cook for 2 minutes or until golden. Use a slotted spoon to transfer to a tray lined with paper towel. Repeat, in 3 more batches, with the remaining prawns and batter, reheating the oil between batches.
  5. Transfer the prawns to a serving platter and arrange with rocket. Serve with the chilli and tomato relish and lemon wedges.

Notes

  • You can prepare to the end of step 2 up to 1 day ahead. Cover the batter with plastic wrap and store in the fridge. Store the relish in an airtight container in the fridge. Continue from step 3, 15 minutes before serving.
  • Store any leftover tomato and chilli relish in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week. Use as a sandwich spread.

    P/S: Sorry for these shockingly bright photos.. I didn’t know what to do with my camera!! It just WON’T take a good pic, I had a bit of a noob moment lol.

    34 thoughts on “Beer-battered Prawns with Tomato & Chilli Relish”

    4. Wow, what a colourful blog! Thks for your comments @ my blog & you've got a great one here too :)I'm following u now & always “Like” u! Check out my Fan Page too!Hope u'll do the same & looking fwd to sharing, not just on our cooking 🙂

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    5. Nothing gets me going more than fried shellfish! I don't know what camera you have, but if you are shooting on an automatic setting you could back away from the plate and zoom in. It looks like the flash is flooding the image with too much light. Cheers!

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    22. Forget the photos. Send me a plate of these stat! Haha! Looks and sounds so delicious. My photos never turn out looking like what I'm actually viewing. I guess I need to invest in a more expensive camera.

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    23. Ohhh, if ever a dish was going to jump out at me – it's always going to be prawns and beer batter…oh, and chillies. Just divine. We have problems with greasy beer batter so we'll try the hot oil tip. Thanks.

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    28. I haven't had shrimp like this since I was a kid at my dad's restaurant!! The guys in back would make me as many as I wanted, and I remember being able to eat quite a few. Unfortunately, I've got a bit of a frying-phobia… just get get myself to do it, so I only get this type of food “out”, and it's not always so good. Yours look just perfect!

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