King prawn salad with chilli pineapple, bean sprouts & red curry dressing

By: Daniel Wilson
From: Huxtabook
Serves: 4 as part of a shared meal
Photographer: Chris Middleton

This is a perfect summer seafood salad. The pineapple is tossed with a little salt and chilli powder, which is how they serve a lot of fruit in Thailand. Use the best-quality prawns you can, so their flavour really shines through.

Ingredients

Quantity	Ingredient
1	mature coconut, opened, peeled and grated
8	thai basil stems, picked
6	mint sprigs, picked
1 handful	picked coriander
250g	bean sprouts, washed
2	red asian shallots, finely sliced
2	red bird’s eye chillies, halved, seeded and cut into half-rounds
2	kaffir lime leaves, very finely sliced
1	banana leaf square, wiped with a damp cloth, for serving

Chilli pineapple

Quantity	Ingredient
1	just-ripe pineapple, (a little green is okay)
1 teaspoon	chilli powder
1 tablespoon	sea salt

Poached prawns

Quantity	Ingredient
1	whole lemongrass stem, bruised
50ml	fish sauce
2	kaffir lime leaves
12	raw king prawns, peeled and deveined, leaving the tails intact

Red curry dressing

Quantity	Ingredient
1 tablespoon	vegetable oil
2	kaffir lime leaves
2 tablespoons	red curry paste
50g	chopped palm sugar
400ml	coconut milk
50ml	fish sauce
50ml	lime juice

Method

For the chilli pineapple

Cut the pineapple into four quarters, then cut away the peel and core. Cut the flesh into 1 cm (½ inch) cubes. Place in a large bowl and sprinkle with the chilli powder and salt. Toss well, cover and macerate in the fridge overnight.
For the poached prawns

Half-fill a saucepan with cold water and add the lemongrass, fish sauce and lime leaves. Bring to the boil, then remove the lime leaves and lemongrass. Reduce the heat so the water is just below simmering point, then add the prawns and poach for 3–4 minutes, or until firm and just cooked through.
Remove the prawns from the poaching liquid, place on a tray or plate and immediately place in the fridge. (I prefer not to use an iced water bath to chill the prawns, as this just waters down their flavour and can make them soggy.)
For the red curry dressing

Heat a small saucepan over medium heat and add the vegetable oil. Once hot, add the lime leaves and curry paste. Cook for 3–4 minutes, or until fragrant. Add the palm sugar and cook for another 5 minutes.
Stir in the coconut milk until well combined, then simmer for 20 minutes, or until the raw curry taste has cooked out. Remove from the heat, then stir in the fish sauce and lime juice. Set aside and leave to cool.
To serve

In a large mixing bowl, toss together the prawns, chilli pineapple, coconut, herbs, bean sprouts, shallot, chilli and most of the sliced lime leaf. Just before serving, add enough dressing to nicely coat the salad.
Place the banana leaf on a large platter and pile the salad on top, in a nice pyramid-like shape. Garnish with the remaining lime leaf and serve with a crisp riesling or a frosty beer.