Are prawns everyone’s favourite seafood? I think so! They’re easy to prepare, so versatile and tasty. And once you learn some simple tips for storing and preparing them, you’ll have the most succulent prawns you’ve ever tasted. Try these easy prawn recipes and see the video and FAQ below for more tips.
Shellfish is a general term for all aquatic creatures other than fin fish. It includes crustaceans and molluscs/mollusks which are further categorised into bivalves (such as clams), univalves (such as abalone) and cephalopods (such as squid).
Crustaceans, such as prawns (shrimp), are shellfish with a hard outer shell which they shed and replace as they grow. They have ten limbs (their Latin name is decapod, meaning ten-footed).
It’s essential to buy raw (green) prawns for cooking, as reheated cooked prawns will be tough.
Once they’re taken out of the water, prawns oxidise quickly and blacken around the head and joints, just like some fruits turn brown quickly after being cut. This harmless but unsightly discolouration can be prevented by adding sulphur, freezing, cooking or peeling them.
The best way to store prawns is unpeeled in a container of water so that they’re completely covered. Details, and step-by-step video here.
The best way to freeze prawns is unpeeled in a container of water so that they’re completely covered. Details, and step-by-step video here.
While pre-cooked prawns are a convenient standby, there’s a big difference in the texture and flavour of prawns you’ve cooked yourself.
Always use raw (green) prawns for cooking, as reheated cooked prawns will be tough. Here’s a find step-by-step guide (with video) on how to boil prawns so they’re juicy, tender and tasty every time.
The secret to cooking any seafood is not to over cook it. Grill split prawns shell-side down to protect the delicate flesh. Details (and video) here.
See a step-by-step video here for the easiest way to devein raw prawns.
Raw crustaceans (including prawns) are called ‘green’, meaning ‘uncooked’ rather than as a reference to their colour. Prawns vary in colour from species to species when raw, though all turn red when cooked.
Despite being various colours in their raw state, all prawns turn red when cooked because their shells contain a carotenoid pigment called astaxanthin (like carotene, which gives carrots their bright orange colour). Astaxanthin’s colour isn’t obvious in live or raw prawns because it’s bound with a protein that usually creates a blue-green colour. Astaxanthin is heat-stable but the protein isn’t, so when heat is applied the protein is destroyed, releasing the pigment and giving the typical red colour of cooked prawns.
When you cook prawns, they curl. But for sushi they need to be flat, so they sit neatly across the rice. Here’s how to cook prawns for sushi: https://beinspired.au/recipes/how-to-cook-prawns-for-sushi/
