Poached Prawns with Chipotle Mayonnaise

Rachel Tepper Paley
·Editor
Updated
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Photo credit: StockFood/Roger Stowell

Don’t be intimated by prawns’ exotic looks. They may seem like something out of the Stone Age, but for an infusion of decadence in your everyday routine, nothing is better.

Prawns taste a lot like shrimp (and can be used interchangeably in recipes), but prawns are usually grown in fresh water whereas shrimp are raised in salt, and prawns have one more set of claws than shrimp.

Prawns also tend to be larger, which makes them excellent vessels for a velvety dollop of chipotle-spiked mayonnaise. A single bite gives you the gentle spiciness of chipotles and creamy mayo followed by a burst of the prawn’s sweetness.

And sure, a modest plate of prawns is excellent for whetting appetites before a main meal, but a whole towering pile of crustaceans makes a luxurious midweek supper.

To prepare the dish, poach your desired number of prawns in boiling water for three to four minutes, until they turn pink, then dump them in a bowl of ice water to halt the cooking process.

In the meantime, make your chipotle mayonnaise. (We suggest starting with homemade mayo made in a blender or going in for some high-quality bottled stuff.) Then crack, dunk, and repeat to your heart’s content.

Chipotle Mayonnaise

from Everyday Food

Makes 1 cup

1 cup mayonnaise
2 to 3 teaspoons canned chipotles in adobo sauce, minced
1 tablespoon adobo sauce (from can)
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
Coarse salt

Stir together mayonnaise, minced canned chipotles in adobo sauce, adobo sauce, and fresh lime juice. Season with coarse salt.