Fresh Spice by Arun Kapil

Author:Arun Kapil [Kapil, Arun]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781910496213
Publisher: Pavilion Books Company Limited
Published: 2014-11-17T22:00:00+00:00

CAJUN POPCORN SHRIMP WITH HOT PEPPER MAYO

I used to snack on this delicacy when I worked the restaurant floor as a busboy for 51-51, a Cajun-Creole restaurant in London, back in the eighties. Here’s my version.

SERVES 4 AS A SNACK

FOR THE HOT PEPPER MAYO

150g (5½oz) best-quality mayonnaise

Juice of ½ lemon

½ tsp black peppercorns, finely ground

¼ tsp Szechuan pepper, finely ground

1 tsp cayenne pepper

9 gratings long pepper

FOR THE POPCORN SHRIMP

Sunflower oil, for deep-frying

ice cubes

1 medium egg

250g (9oz) plain flour

1 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp sea salt

1.5kg (3lb 5oz) raw prawns, shelled, deveined and chopped into 2.5cm (1in) chunks (aka the ‘popcorn shrimp’)

Cornflour, for dusting

1. Mix all the mayo ingredients together in a bowl, pour into a small serving dish, cover with clingfilm, then set aside in the fridge.

2. Pour the sunflower oil for the popcorn shrimp into an electric deep-fat fryer set to 170°C. (Alternatively, pour the oil into a large saucepan until one-third full and heat it over a medium heat. After about 4–5 minutes, drop a cube of white bread into the hot oil. If it takes 3 seconds to turn golden brown, it’s the right heat for the prawns. If not, adjust the heat accordingly.)

3. Take two mixing bowls, one slightly larger than the other. Pop some ice cubes into the larger bowl and cover with cold water. Put the smaller bowl on top of the ice, nestling it into the iced water. In another small bowl, mix the egg with 200ml (7fl oz) ice-cold water.

4. Add the flour, cayenne and salt to the smaller bowl over the ice, mix well, then pour in the egg–water mix and only just combine the mixture with a fork. Don’t worry at all about the few lumps; in fact they’ll help to form the crisp, cooked batter.

5. Pop the prawn pieces onto a plate, dust them in cornflour, then dip them into the batter and coat well, allowing any excess batter to drain off. Gently lower them into the hot oil. Don’t crowd the pan; cook in three or four batches if necessary. Deep-fry for a few minutes until crisp and golden, then drain on kitchen paper. Serve immediately in a large serving dish with the hot pepper mayo.

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