Simply prawns

This is one of the most basic of recipes for fried prawns, but sometimes there is nothing better than a modest plate of prawns with a piece of fresh bread. Also, prawns prepared this way are prone to versatile use, they could be a great addition to a salad or pasta. Today I served mine as an appetizer over a bed of tomato salsa.

You'll need:
King prawns (preferably fresh)
White wine
Finely chopped garlic clove
Chili powder
Parsley
Lemon
olive oil
butter

For those of you living in Florence I recommend a morning visit to Mercato Centrale for a good selection of fresh seafood.

1. Prepare your prawns. If you bought them with the heads still on, just break them off and twist, don't use a knife. Then proceed to remove the shell and legs from the tail. They should come off easily. Make a cut across the back (outer side) and remove the intestines (a thin grey line along the back of the shrimp).
2. Warm up a pan, add some olive oil and butter. Once the butter melts, add garlic and chili powder and allow to fry for a few seconds.
3. Add your prawns and fry them for some 30 seconds on one side over medium heat. Then put them on the other side and add some wine. Be careful not to overcook the shrimp, it becomes rubbery if overcooked.
4. Remove from the pan and sprinkle with fresh parsley and lemon juice, et voila!

Bon appétit!

Asian chicken satay with spicy strawberry sauce

A spicy option for those loving to grill coming straight from Indonesia. The sweet-spicy sauce is exactly what that chicken needed.

You'll need:

one chicken breast

For the marinade:

3cm of fresh ginger

2 garlic cloves

chili powder

lemon

2 spoons of olive oil

salt & pepper

For the strawberry sauce:

200g of strawberries

2-3 spoons of honey

1 garlic clove

3cm of fresh ginger

1 teaspoon of red wine vinegar

chili powder

lemon/lime juice

lemon zest (optional)

 

1. Cut the chicken breast into small flat bits ready to be put on a grilling stick. Crash garlic and ginger into a paste and prepare a marinade using the ingredients from the list above. Put aside for at least 3 hours.
2. Chop garlic and ginger into a paste for the sauce and put on the heat in a sauce pan. Blend the strawberries and add to the saucepan. Add the remaining ingredients. Allow the flavours to combine.
3. Put the chicken on sticks and grill on a grill pan or a grill, et voila!

Bon appétit!

Watermelon aqua fresca

With the temperatures outside way above 30 degrees, aqua fresca comes to rescue! Aguas frescas are cooling down drinks popular especially in Mexico made from a variety of fresh fruit. Today I propose a watermelon version.

You'll need:
a watermelon
lime
fresh mint leaves
ice cubes
brown sugar (optional)

1. Cut the watermeloon into pieces removing all the seeds and put into a bowl/pot.
2. Chop the mint leaves and add to the bowl.
3. Cut the lime into half, cut of a slice for decoration and squeeze the rest into the bowl.
4. Add sugar.
5. Blend.
6. Put in the fridge to cool down.
7. Serve with ice cubes.

Bon appétit!