Malay Wedding Menu & Recipes – Black Pepper Prawns (The Chinese Way!)

Famous and mouth watering dish that will swallow all the way to your ears! Easy Prawns recipe.

Recipe for Black Pepper Prawns

Ingredients: (12 pax)

• 24 fresh king-size grey prawns (no need to deshell)
• 2 red bell peppers, cut into strips or cube (discard the seeds)
• 2 yellow bell peppers, cut into strips or cube (discard the seeds)
• 2 bombay onions cut into cube
• 1 bunch spring onion, cut in long thin strips (for garnishing)
• Oil for deep frying.

Prawn marination:

• 1 egg (or 2 egg yolk)
• 3 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 tbsp of sesame oil
• 2 tsp black peppercorns, crushed
• 2 tbsp of rice flour
• 2 tbsp of tapioca flour
• 4 tsp ginger-garlic paste
• 1/2 tsp of chicken stock powder
• 1 tbsp of light sauce

The masala:

• 3 tbsp unsalted butter
• 250 gm onions, chopped
• 2 tsp ginger-garlic paste
• 1 tbsp of dark soya sauce
• 1 tbsp of oyster sauce
• 2 tsp coriander powder
• 1/2 cup prawn or chicken stock
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 10 curry leaves
• 1 tbsp coriander leaves (chopped)
• A pinch of black pepper
• 1/2 tbsp of sugar
• 1/2 tbsp of Ajinomoto (strickly optional!)
• Salt to taste

Method:

Prawn marination, peppers and onions:

1. Mix all the marination ingredients in a bowl, add in the prawns and allow to marinate for at least 30 minutes.
2. Heat oil in a wok over high heat. Add in all bell peppers and cubed onions (deep fry these items for only about 8 – 10 seconds! – make sure the oil is hot enough) and bring out all the fried items from the wok to drain the oil.
3. Add in the marinated prawns only until the oil gets VERY hot again from the same wok. (this method will make the prawns super crispy)
4. When the prawns are cooked and floated, take it out and drain the oil.

Cooking:

1. Heat butter in a wok over medium heat, add in chopped onions and curry leaves; saute until fragrant.
2. Add ginger-garlic paste, saute, add in dark sauce, oyster sauce, coriander powder and stir fry until oil leaves the sides.
3. Now add marinated prawns and stir fry over high heat for about 2 minutes (do not burn!). Flip the items in the wok to even the sauce! (do it the chinese way!)
4. Add the stock (or water), stir, add lemon juice, salt to taste, sugar and stir until the moisture has evaporated. Add in fried bell pepper, fried cubed onions and coriander leaves. Flip the items in the wok again!
5. Cook for a minute. Sprinkle spring onions and serve hot with plain white rice.