Prawns with sweetcorn and special seafood seasoning dust
This recipe combines two BBQ favourites: plump prawns and sweet corn cobs, steamed inside their husks. The whole lot is then covered in a spiced butter, in the style of a Louisiana shrimp boil.
This recipe is taken from LIVE FIRE: Seasonal Barbecue Recipes and Stories of Live Fire Traditions Old and New by Helen Graves (Hardie Grant, £26) Photography: Robert Billington
Helen says: "This is reminiscent of a Louisiana shrimp boil, only grilled. Why not? I actually use this seasoning dust on lots of different seafood, not least my beloved crabs – it’s incredibly satisfying to suck the dust from pieces of shell and swipe quivering claw meat through the pools of spiced butter that collect on the table. Adding grilled small potatoes would be a very good idea, to bulk this out."
Ingredients
Metric
Imperial
Special seafood seasoning dust
- 2 tsp fennel seeds
- 1 tbsp of paprika
- 2 tsp onion powder
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tbsp of sea salt
- 1 1/2 tsp ground white pepper
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp dried oregano
Prawns and corns
- 4 fresh corn on the cob, (or 1 per person), preferably in their husks
- 20 king prawns, (shells on)
- neutral oil, for cooking
- 150g of butter
- 1 green chilli, finely chopped
- lemon wedges, to serve
Equipment
- Barbecue
Method
Prepare a barbecue for direct cooking over medium heat
Lightly toast the fennel seeds in a dry frying pan over a medium heat for a couple of minutes, until fragrant, moving them around so they don’t burn. Transfer to a spice grinder or pestle and mortar and grind or crush to a powder. Combine in a bowl with the paprika, onion and garlic powders, cayenne, salt, white pepper, thyme and oregano
- 2 tsp fennel seeds
- 1 tbsp of paprika
- 2 tsp onion powder
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tbsp of sea salt
- 1 1/2 tsp ground white pepper
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp dried oregano
If using in-husk corn, snip off any long silky parts using kitchen scissors then place the cobs over direct medium heat for 15 minutes, or until the husks are black and the corn inside is soft and yellow (you can peel a little husk back to check). If you want to char the corn, now is the time to peel off the husks and do that, taking care not to leave it on the grill more than a few minutes longer
- 4 fresh corn on the cob, (or 1 per person), preferably in their husks
If using pre-prepared corn cobs, rub them with a little neutral oil. Grill over direct heat medium heat, turning occasionally with tongs, for about 10 minutes until soft, golden and charred
- neutral oil, for cooking
Rub the prawns with a little neutral oil and grill them over direct heat for 1–2 minutes on each side, until completely pink
- 20 king prawns, (shells on)
- neutral oil, for cooking
Combine the butter and 2 tablespoons of the seasoning dust in a saucepan and melt to combine. Arrange the grilled corn and prawns on a plate and pour over the spiced butter, then scatter over the green chilli and add lemon wedges, to serve
- 150g of butter
- 1 green chilli, finely chopped
- lemon wedges, to serve
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