For a long time, I struggled to distinguish between prawns and shrimp. Am I the only one? Anyway, I finally sat down to Google the two, and I now know many interesting differences, some of which I have highlighted in the sidebar for you.
While they are, in fact, different animals, both taste pretty similar and are equally delicious to cook with. Because they are essentially identical, you could use prawn or shrimp in this recipe – whichever is more accessible for you here. Both are readily available in Portugal. I do enjoy cooking with this particular crustacean. There are so many yummy Asian recipes that incorporate shrimp and prawns. Here is one recipe that might tickle your senses – a spicy, chilli and asparagus version. While I like my portion really spicy, feel free to adapt by omitting the additional piri piri. I also often find the larger long chillies here much less spicy than the small piri piri, so do what you must to suit your individual tolerance of spice.
Ingredients
- 2 cups prawn
- 1 cup asparagus sliced into one-inch columns
- 1 big red onion sliced finely
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 tbsp oyster sauce
- 1 tsp fish sauce
- 1 tsp chilli sauce
- 1 tsp ground fresh garlic
- 1 tsp ground fresh onion
- 1 tsp ground fresh chilli
- 1 tsp piri piri flakes (for extra spice)
- 1 pinch of sugar
Instructions
Clean and de-vein your prawn and set aside.
Grind the garlic, onion and chilli. I simply peel and put them into a blender and blitz to a smooth paste – easy!
Heat your wok or pan with a neutral oil and toss in your sliced onions. Once they are softened and have become translucent, add your ground garlic, onion and chilli into the wok.
If you like your prawn dish to be super spicy (like me), then your piri piri flakes can also go in at this point. Now stir the wok for the next 4–5 minutes. You will notice that when everything starts to caramelise, the oil will rise to the top. This is when your prawns and asparagus can go into the wok at the same time.
Stir for two minutes and then add in your oyster sauce, fish sauce, chilli sauce and sugar. If you don’t want your dish to be too spicy, you can substitute chilli sauce here with tomato sauce. Give it another 3–4 minutes, stirring constantly to bring the flavours together. Your dish is done as soon as your prawns have turned pink and your asparagus has softened slightly but is still left crunchy!
Serve with fragrant steamed rice. If you like, add some fresh coriander and scallions (spring onion) to garnish.
*This recipe serves two
Wine Pairing
This beautiful Alvarinho & Sauvignon Blanc blend from Quintas de Melgaço with passion fruit, blood orange and melon notes works perfectly with a spicy seafood dish for me. Pure and juicy, with a perfectly balanced acidity to cut the spice and elevate your dining experience.
Prawn vs Shrimp
- Prawns tend to be bigger than shrimp.
- Shrimp comes in a wider variety of sizes.
- Prawns usually have legs that are longer than shrimps.
- Shrimps have one pair of legs, while prawns have three pairs.
- Prawns have a harder shell, making them a little bit stiffer compared to shrimps, which have a more flexible and bendy body.
Joy Entry is a Malaysian home cook based in Lagos who is obsessed with the provocative, unapologetic flavours of South-East Asian cuisine
Instagram: @thatasianhomecook
