I cook - Spicy prawns with garlicky bread crumbs

I first tried this dish at Yauatcha, spicy soft shell crab (避風塘軟殼蟹). It was delicious, very moreish. For such a visually complex dish, it must be quite complex to make, I thought. Until one of my favorite bloggers showed that it is possible to make it at home, without sweating your rear end off. I've bookmarked her recipe since.

This is my first practice, adapting her recipe to what I have in the pantry. I left out one key ingredient she used, fermented black beans. I also added bread crumb and almond flakes because that's what they did in Yauatcha (and I like it very much). I like my adaptation, but I think I will try the black bean version next time, to see which one I prefer.

Spicy prawns with garlicky breadcrumbs

- 3 tbsps vegetable oil (I fried the prawn heads in the oil and used that for cooking)
- 1lb of prawns, shelled and deveined (a mixture of cod and prawns are nice too)
- 1 tbsp corn starch
- 3 garlic cloves, finely diced
- 3 green onions, white parts minced and green parts chopped
- 2 slices of ginger, in the size of matchsticks
- 1 red chilli, roughly chopped
- 3 tbsps bread crumbs
- 2 tbsps almond flakes
- 1/2 tsp ground white pepper
- 1/4 tsp sugar
- 1/2 salt
- ground black pepper

Dry the prawns with paper towels. Coat the prawns in corn starch. Heat the oil in a frying pan and cook the prawns until they are 80-90% done. Remove the prawns from the pan and keep them warm.

In the same pan, add in the garlic, white parts of the green onions, ginger and red chilli. Fry for 5 minutes on medium heat. You don't want to burn the garlic so keep stirring at a low-medium flame. After that, add in bread crumbs and almond flakes. Season the crumb mixture with black/white pepper, salt and sugar. Keep stirring when all oil is absorbed by the bread crumbs and almond flakes seem toasted/crunchy.

Put the prawns back to the pan. Be careful not to include any liquid coming out from the prawns. This dish should be quite dry, not soggy. Stir the prawns until each one of them is coated with the golden crispy bread crumbs. Taste and season to your liking. Serve in a big plate and dot it with the green parts of the green onions.

To be enjoyed with a plate of steamed rice.