These are my best Peri peri prawns. A classic Mozambican Portuguese dish which has assimilated into South African cuisine over the years. You could say it’s one of our traditional dishes too. I made this recipe with my own mild version of peri peri sauce, and these were the best I have ever eaten.
Making your own peri peri sauce allows you to control the levels of heat. In my case, this means I can make it really mild. African birds eye chillies are used to make traditional peri peri sauce and they are extremely fiery. I took the seeds out to temper the heat, but leave them in if you like things spicy.
I have included four milder chillies in the recipe to add to the sauce as an option. If you can’t find African birds eye chillies use Thai red chillies.
There are so many very good commercially available peri peri sauce options to choose from if you didn’t want to make your own. Find your favourite and at what heat level you prefer and add it to these peri peri prawns. I love Nando’s, Ruys, Fabrica do Prego and the sauce from my local favourite Portuguese restaurant Diaz tavern.
Peri peri prawns are wonderful cooked over a fire but I love them cooked on a pan or a wok with this recipe. The sauce is so delicious you will want to save each drop.
INGREDIENTS
500gm queen or large prawns, cleaned and deveined but heads kept on
¼ cup peri peri sauce (see my recipe below) or use your favourite store-bought option
2 Tbs olive oil
50gm / 3.5 Tbsp Kerrygold butter
3 fresh bay leaves
3 garlic cloves crushed
1 –2 small deseeded chillies (omit if you are using a hot sauce)
Juice from 1 lemon
½ cup / 125ml) dry white wine
2 Tbsp chopped parsley (and a little extra for garnish)
¼ cup brandy to flambe
INSTRUCTIONS
Place your cleaned prawns in a flat dish. Place all the ingredients except the brandy into a small pot and heat until the butter has melted. Pour this over the prawns.
Marinate for 2 hours.
Heat a large non-stick frying pan or wok. You could do this on a large flat pan (skottel) on the fire. Add the prawns with all the marinade to the pan and cook until the prawns just start turning pink. Be careful not to overcook prawns as they will carry over cooking. If in doubt cook them slightly under.
Heat the brandy in a small pot and pour over the hot prawns. Light this to flambé the prawns.
Recipe written by Sam Linsell
This article originally appeared on Drizzle and Dip
