PRAWN SALAD with GREENS

Even though it is only the beginning of spring, I'm already feeling like making meals fit for summer! This is a perfect meal for a late dinner, as it is incredibly light and healthy. I'm really getting used to making seafood a few times a week and I feel like I'm reaping the health benefits already. Prawns are a complete & great source of protein, as they contain all nine amino acids and 100g of prawns contains a whooping 25g of protein, around the same amount as chicken & beef contain. This seafood is very low in calories (always nice to hear!). 100g of prawns contains a mere 115 or so calories. Whilst prawns do contain higher than average levels of cholesterol, they are made up of GOOD cholesterol due to their healthy fats (Omega 3 fatty acid). Prawns are also a rich in Vitamin B-6, B-12, iron and zinc. They may not be the cheapest meat option, but who isn't willing to spend some money on their health? 

INGREDIENTS

• 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
• 3cm fresh ginger, grated 
• 200g green beans, trimmed & cut into 3em pieces
• 1/2 a bunch buk choy, roughly chopped
• 1/2 a bunch pak choy, roughly chopped
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 300g raw or cooked prawns, shelled & tails on or off 
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• Optional- fresh coriander leaves, torn and 1 spring onion, finely chopped

COOKING 

1. Heat olive oil in a medium fry pan over medium heat, swirling to coat the pan. Add the garlic and ginger and cook, stirring often, for 2 minutes or until fragrant. 

2. Add the cut beans to the pan and cook for 1 minute, stirring, before adding the buk choy & pak choy. Add the soy sauce to the pan and stir well, then cover for 2 minutes or until the buy & pak choy are tender (the beans can still have a little crunchiness to them). 

If the prawns are raw: remove the vegetables from the pan and add a small splash more olive oil to the pan over medium heat. Add the prawns and cook for 1-2 minutes or until they become cloudy in colour. 

If the prawns are cooked: remove the vegetables from the pan and place them in a medium bowl with the cooked prawns. Drizzle the lime juice on top and add the coriander and spring onion, if using. Toss well and serve. 

Serves / 2

Total Preparation time / 10 minutes 

Total Cooking time / under 10 minutes 

x Emily

PRAWN, ZUCCHINI & TOMATO PASTA

I am trying to incorporate more seafood into my diet as I know how good it is for me! My husband unfortunately does not really care for it so this will be interesting! First up: a very simple but delicious and hearty prawn pasta. The prawns should be fresh from a supermarket deli or a butcher. I like to purchase them already cooked with their shells removed as it is a real time saver. You often cannot buy them sans tails, however it only takes a few seconds to remove the tails and I quite enjoy this task! When I'm not in a big rush I cook the pasta first, drain it and then use the same saucepan for step 2, however you can have both step 1 and 2 going at the same time (just make sure the water has boiled in step 1 before you start step 2, so that the pasta will be cooked by the time you need it to be!). 

INGREDIENTS

• 400g gluten-free pasta (or regular pasta if not allergic/intolerant)
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil 
• 2 medium zucchini, chopped into 2cm cubes
• 1/2 red onion, finely chopped
• 1 large garlic clove, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste 
• 1 small red chilli, finely chopped or 1/2-1 teaspoon chilli flakes
• 300g cooked prawns, shells removed, with or without tails
• 250g cherry tomatoes, washed & halved
• 2 tablespoons fresh basil and / or fresh parsley 
• 40g reduced-fat feta, crumbled or 40g shaved paramesan (or if dairy free, 40g goats or sheep's feta)

COOKING 

1. Bring a large, lightly salted saucepan of water to the boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook, stirring occasionally, for 6-8 minutes or until the pasta is cooked to your liking. Remove from heat and drain in a colander, reserving 1/2 a cup of the pasta water. 

2. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large, deep fry pan over medium heat and swirl to coat. Add the zucchini pieces and cook, stirring frequently, for 2 minutes. Add the onion and garlic and stir all together for another 2 minutes. Pour in the tomato paste and chilli and stir well to combine. Gradually pour in the 1/2 cup pasta water you reserved, just a couple tablespoons at a time and continue stirring until the water is absorbed. Reduce the heat to a simmer and add the cooked pasta, prawns, cherry tomatoes, herb/s and cheese. Stir until the pasta is warmed through and all ingredients are combined. Remove from heat. 

Divide pasta evenly into 4 bowls and serve with extra herb/s on top, as well as a generous pinch of ground black pepper, if desired. 

Serves / 4 

Total Preparation time / around 15 minutes 

Total Cooking time / 15-20 minutes 

x Emily 

NO-NUT PRAWN PAD THAI

I often find myself craving Thai takeaway, so learning to make a healthy, low-fat pad thai is super essential to me (and my waistline). I have made various pad thai’s in the past, however they have been quite high in fat and enormous in portion size. Here is my version of pad thai that contains no nuts and no sugar. Some of you may stop reading here, as this recipe is clearly not going to be for an authentic pad thai dish. For those of you still with me, bless you for staying. The hard cold truth is that sugar and nuts contain a great deal of fat and well, to state the obvious, sugar. And with this comes a great deal of extra calories. Without them in this dish more rice noodles are available per serving as well as more vegetables, more prawns (or tofu if going for a vegetarian option) and a tastier dressing/sauce.

Ingredients

• 100g rice stick noodles
• 3 free range eggs (177g), beaten
• 2 teaspoons rice bran oil / sesame oil 
• 250g prawns, peeled, deveined, tails on or off
• 1 small red capsicum (155g), thinly sliced
• 200g buk choy, base removed and roughly chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 2 teaspoons fish sauce
• 1 teaspoon Mirin seasoning 
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• 50g bean sprouts
• 1 green shallot (3g), finely chopped
• 1/4 cup fresh coriander leaves, finely chopped (10g)
• 1 lime (50g), cut into wedges 

Cooking 

1. Bring a medium saucepan of water to the boil and add noodles. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 3-4 minutes or until the noodles are tender but not mushy. Remove from the stove and drain well under cold running water. 

2. Meanwhile, heat 1 teaspoon oil in a wok or large, deep frying pan over medium heat and swirl to coat. Pour the eggs into the wok/pan and leave to set for 2-3 minutes. Once set, remove from heat and place on a plate. When cool enough, cut the omelette into small pieces. 

3. Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a wok or large, deep frying pan over medium heat (it is a great idea to use the same wok/pan that you cooked the egg in, as it will have traces of oil left in it) and swirl to coat. Add the prawns, capsicum and buk choy. Cook, stirring often, for 4 minutes or until the prawns are pearly pink in colour and cooked through. Add the garlic to the pan and stir-fry for 1 minute. 

4. Put the egg pieces back into the wok/pan as well as the cooked noodles, fish sauce, mirin seasoning and 1 tablespoon lime juice. Stir gently to combine with tongs. 

5. Remove from the heat and divide the noodles, prawns and vegetables into 2 bowls. Serve warm with half of the bean sprouts, shallots, coriander and lime wedges on top of each bowl. Squeeze lime juice onto the noodles for a citrus dressing / sauce. 

Serves / 2 

Total Preparation time / 15-20 minutes (extra if you are peeled & deveining the prawns yourself)

Total Cooking time / 15 minutes 

Total Calories / approx. 434 per serve 

x Emily 

PRAWN & CHIVE DUMPLINGS

Last week my fiancée very nicely asked me when we were going to have gyoza or dumplings again. Unbeknownst to him, I had already stocked up on gow gee wrappers and prawns for a recipe in the not to distant future. I love eating dumplings out at sushi trains, however I find myself getting a little frustrated at the rising price: $6 or $7 for 2-3 dumplings! Of course mine are nowhere near as expertly folded or presented, but practice makes…an average dumpling maker. If you are a big fan of ginger, add in 1 or 2 grated tablespoons to the prawn filling. Serve immediately after steaming or they will wilt and become soggy. Ps please note that gow gee wrappers are not gluten-free.

INGREDIENTS

Dipping sauce 

• 1 teaspoon fresh chives, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar 
• 2 tablespoons sweet chilli sauce

Dumplings

• 500g prawns, heads & tails removed and peeled, roughly chopped
• 1 small handful fresh chives, finely chopped
• 1/2 tablespoon finely grated fresh ginger, packed tightly 
• 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon mirin (or mirin seasoning)
• 1 tablespoon gluten free soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon white sesame seeds
• 1 teaspoon black sesame seeds
• 30-34 gow gee wrappers
• 1 egg white, lightly beaten 

PREPARATION / COOKING 

1. Mix prawns, chives, ginger, vinegar, mirin, soy sauce and sesame seeds in a medium to large bowl. Stir well to combine. 

2. Make the dipping sauce by stirring the three ingredients in a small bowl. 

3. Place gow gee wrappers on a clean surface. (If you are working with wrappers that have been in the freezer and are thawing, place the wrappers under a damp tea-towel so they do not dry out). Place 1-2 teaspoons of the prawn mixture in the centre of each wrapper. Brush all the edges with egg white and fold over to close. Pleat the edges of the wrapper with your fingers to seal well. Repeat this process until all wrappers have been used or until the filling has run out. 

4. Bring a small to medium saucepan of water to the boil. (If you have a steamer, line it with baking paper and place it on top of the saucepan. If you do not have a steamer, you can use a colander like I do, but just make sure you place 2 sheets of baking paper over the colander and lightly coat with oil so the dumplings do not stick). Working in batches of no more than 5, steam dumplings (with the saucepan lid over the top of the colander or the fitted lid over the top of the steamer) for 4-5 minutes or until dumplings are transparent and until the prawn meat is pink. Serve dumplings straight away with the dipping sauce. 

Makes / 30 - 34
Total Preparation time / 45 minutes 
Total Cooking time / 30-35 minutes 

x Emily 

PRAWN, CELERY & PARSLEY RISOTTO

I have to give a great deal of thanks to my mother and her mammoth cookbook collection for my inspiration in the kitchen. I swear every time I go to my parents’ house, my mother has a new cookbook that she’s obsessed with. She has dog-eared the pages, placed post-its on every recipe she wants to make (which is 100 out of 105 recipes most of the time, so I have never fully understood the point of this) and is bursting at the seams to tell me about the meals that she has / is planning to make. Its really sweet. The idea for this risotto came from a recent Weight Watcher’s ‘Takeaway’ cookbook that was shared with me as mum’s ‘new favourite’. Now, I adore risottos however they often are too rich or heavy for me to eat at night. This is why I particularly love this dish. No cream, no cheese, no butter and no fuss.

INGREDIENTS

• 200g peeled prawns, tailed removed
• 3 stalks celery, washed & finely chopped
• 1/2 cup fresh parsley, roughly chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 1/2 cups arborio cup
• 3 cups gluten-free vegetable stock 
• 1 small brown onion, finely chopped
• sea salt 
• coconut oil 

COOKING 

1. Bring vegetable stock to the boil and simmer, covered, until required. 

2. Meanwhile, heat coconut oil in a large saucepan over medium heat, adding onion and garlic when pan is heated. Stir for 4 minutes or until onion is soft. Add rice to the pan and cook, stirring, for one minute. Reduce the heat to low and add the hot stock, one ladle (1/2 a cup) at a time, stirring constantly until all the rice is absorbed. (This should take around 15-20 minutes depending on the heat of your stove). 

3. Stir in the prawns and celery and season with sea salt. Cook on low heat, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes or until prawns are pink in colour and are cooked and heated through. Remove from heat and sprinkle with parsley, stirring this through if you like. 

Serves / 4 

Total Preparation time / 12 minutes (add more time if you are peeled & de-tailed the prawns yourself)

Total Cooking time / 27-32 minutes 

x E

PRAWN & VEGETABLE FRIED RICE

Another prawn dish! You may be thinking ‘when is she going to get over prawns and experiment with other types of seafood?’ which is funny, as I have been pondering the same thing. I think I am enjoying prawns so much at the moment that I may cook them to death before moving onto crab. Crab will be a real effort to cook without using any dairy- a future challenge! This fried rice is quite effortless to make and tastes like you spend hours in the kitchen perfecting it.

INGREDIENTS

• 200g cooked & peeled prawns, thawed to room temperature
• 400g bean sprouts, washed
• 4cm ginger, grated
• 3 green onions, finely chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1/2 large red capsicum, cut into even cubes
• 1 head broccoli, cut into florets
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1 1/2 cups doongara rice 
• 2 tablespoons gluten-free oyster sauce 
• 2 tablespoons tamari sauce 
• 1 tablespoon lime juice 

COOKING 

1. Place rice in a medium saucepan with 3 cups water and bring to the boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 10-12 minutes or until all water has been absorbed. Remove from heat. 

2. Heat sesame oil in a large wok over medium-low heat and swirl to coat. Add ginger and garlic and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes or until fragrant. Then add broccoli, capsicum and oyster sauce and cook, stirring frequently, for 4 minutes or until broccoli is almost tender. Add prawns, sprouts, tamari sauce and rice and stir, combining well. Remove from heat. 

3. Serve with lime juice stirred in and green onion on the top of the rice. 

Serves / 4 

Total Preparation time / 10 minutes 

Total Cooking time / 25 minutes 

x E

PRAWN THAI SALAD

 I am so excited to announce that I cooked seafood for the first time last night! The first time ever. I expanded my horizons away from my comfort zone, which involves mainly chicken, vegetable dishes and yoghurt. Whilst I did not cook the prawns from scratch (I actually bought then pre peeled & pre cooked) they tasted very appetizing. If you find yourself doubtful that prepackaged prawns can taste edible; join the club. I threw my pretentiousness aside yesterday however and I am so glad that I did. For people with busy lives who allow themselves 20 minutes every night to cook, I recommend that you try these prawns. Of course, do not forgo the delectable prawns that you cook from scratch on the bbq. I am merely suggesting a faster way for a weeknight feed. I have also recently discovered tamari sauce, a good replacement for soy sauce, as so many of the soy sauce brands out there are extremely salty and not gluten-free.


INGREDIENTS

• 200g prawns, peeled & cooked
• 150g green beans, trimmed 
• 150g carrots, peeled and cut thinly 
• 2-3 small lebanese cucumbers, cut thinly
• 250g rice vermicelli noodles
• 2 garlic cloves, finely diced 
• 3 green onions, finely chopped 
• 3 tablespoons tamari sauce (similar to soy sauce but gluten-free)
• 1 teaspoon grape seed/ sesame/ olive oil 
• 1 teaspoon fish sauce 
• Optional- a drizzle of fresh lemon juice 

COOKING 


1. Bring a kettle of water to the boil. Place vermicelli noodles in a large bowl/saucepan and pour the water over them, completely covering the noodles. Separate with a fork and let sit for around 5 minutes or until tender but not soggy. Drain well, pouring cold water over the noodles. 


2. Heat the oil in a large wok and swirl to coat. Add the garlic and green onions and stir for 1 minute or until fragrant. Add the beans, carrots and prawns and stir well, for around 4 minutes or until the beans and carrots are tender. Add the cooked vermicelli noodles, tamari sauce and fish sauce and toss well to combine. Remove from heat and serve in a large serving bowl, adding a drizzle of fresh lemon if you wish. 


Serves / 4 as a main dish 
Preparation time / 15 minutes 
Cooking time / 6 minutes 

x E