Preparation time:
- 15mins
Cooking time:
- 20mins
Specialty:
- Dairy-free
- Pescatarian
A couple of years ago I ate a wonderful pasta dish in one of my favorite Michelin star restaurants in Italy near my home time. Diced red raw prawns (called Crudaiola di Gamberi in Italian) were one of the main ingredients of that pasta dish and it was mind blowing! We found super fresh spot prawns and I have decided to prepare my own version, inspired by that pasta masterpiece. I love how the tomato sauce in this recipe is super creamy and light at the same time and doesn't overpower at all the fresh raw prawns. The fried prawns' heads add crunchiness to the dish enhancing the prawns' flavor. It's a well-balanced mix in sweetness and acidity.
Fun fact: I sprained my ankle really badly the night before we were meant to cook this new recipe and Ben had to prepare all by himself. The result was absolutely stunning! Really proud :).
Ingredients (2 Servings):
- 180g of Spaghetti
- 1lb Fresh Spot Prawns
- 20-25 Cherry Tomatoes
- 1 Clove of Garlic
- 1 Teaspoon of Raw Coconut Sugar
- Extra-virgin Olive Oil
- Freshly Ground Black Pepper
- Sea Salt
- Fresh Basil
- Organic Rice Flour
Instructions:
- De-shell the prawns and separate the heads from the body shells. The heads are perfect to deep-fry while the other shells can be used to prepare a fish broth.
- Dice the prawns' body meat and season with extra-virgin olive oil, sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
- Cut the cherry tomatoes into halves.
- Add 1 clove of garlic to a non-stick pan and simmer with extra-virgin olive oil until golden. Add the cherry tomatoes to the pan.
- Season with sea salt and black pepper.
- Once the cherry tomatoes are half cooked add 1 teaspoon of coconut sugar and keep stirring at medium heat until they are completely cooked and mashed.
- Remove the garlic, add some fresh basil and blend the cherry tomatoes until you obtain a very smooth and creamy sauce.
- Prepare a light batter with 4 tablespoons of organic rice flour and some cold water. Mix all together. The batter's consistency has to be smooth and liquid.
- Drain the prawns' heads and remove the excess water.
- Pre-heat in a saucepan some extra-virgin olive oil.
- Dip the head in the batter and deep fry it until they become crispy and golden. Add 2-3 heads at the time depending on the size of your saucepan.
- Boil some water in a pot and once the water is boiling add 1 tablespoon of sea salt and then add the pasta. The pasta needs to cook for 2 mins less than the time recommended on the box.
- Pour the tomato sauce into a bowl.
- Drain the pasta and add it to the bowl with the sauce. Stir until the sauce is fully mixed with the pasta.
- Plate the pasta, drizzle some extra-virgin olive oil and some freshly chopped basil. Add the raw prawns on top and serve the pasta with 1-2 deep fried heads.