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Prawns with tamarind caramel and black pepper

Published: 13 Sep 18
Updated: 18 Mar 24

”If you can’t find palm sugar, use light brown sugar instead. To offset the sweetness of the caramel, be generous with the black pepper – use considerably more than you would to simply season a dish.” – Ravinder Bhogal

Or toss prawns into a fiery chilli stir-fry for a delicious weeknight dinner.

Easy

Test kitchen approved

Serves 4
Hands-on time 30 min

Or toss prawns into a fiery chilli stir-fry for a delicious weeknight dinner.

Dairy-free recipes

Nutrition: per serving

Calories: 482kcals
Fat: 26.3g (2g saturated)
Protein: 23.1g
Carbohydrates: 37.8g (34.1g sugars)
Fibre: 0.9g
Salt: 1.1g

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Ingredients

Rapeseed oil for frying
500-600g sustainable raw tiger or jumbo king prawns, heads and shells removed but tails left intact, defrosted if frozen
Juice ½ lime
Small handful fresh Thai basil (or regular basil), leaves torn
Jasmine rice to serve

For the tamarind caramel

2 red chillies, chopped (seeds removed if you wish)
1 banana shallot, chopped
Handful fresh coriander, leaves picked, stems chopped
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
3 tbsp rapeseed oil
150g palm sugar, crushed
2 tbsp tamarind paste
1 tbsp fish sauce

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Method

For the tamarind caramel, pound the chillies, shallot, coriander stems and garlic to a paste in a pestle and mortar (or whizz together in a mini food processor).
Heat the rapeseed oil in a wide heavy-based pan and fry the paste for 5-7 minutes until fragrant. Add the palm sugar and cook until melted and golden. Add 2 tbsp cold water (be careful as it will spit), then cook for 2 minutes until thick and glossy. Cool slightly, then stir in the tamarind and fish sauce. Set aside.
Heat the oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat. Add the prawns and cook for 3-4 minutes, turning to cook evenly. Add enough tamarind caramel to coat, then grind in plenty of black pepper and stir-fry for 30 seconds. Take off the heat, squeeze over the lime juice and scatter over the basil. Serve with cooked jasmine rice and an extra drizzle of the tamarind caramel