This superb barbecue recipe comes from the lovely Emma Warren, author of The Catalan Kitchen, a book that celebrates the food of Spain where Emma has spent many years. Emma is a beautiful cook and a lovely person – she helped me with recipe development for my Entertaining cookbook, and she’s been on board as a stylist and food assistant on various projects for me, but also for Karen Martini, Matt Preston and many others. She’s a gun!
Catalunya (or Catalonia) is the part of north-eastern Spain that includes Barcelona and the Costa Brava. Seafood, olive oil, bread and all sorts of vegetables are the basis of this rich and storied regional cuisine.
As Emma says about this easy recipe, “The pairing of crustaceans and cured ham is a cocktail party favourite around the world. The Catalans love prawn (shrimp) heads and it’s quite typical to see punters at restaurants or beach shacks slurping them like straws. Serve these as a really quick and easy summer appetiser or offer them individually as canapés at your next party and see if anyone eats them like a true Catalan!”
You’ll need 8 long metal or pre-soaked bamboo skewers for this dish.
Serves: 4
Time: 15 minutes
Ingredients
- 1 garlic clove
- zest and juice of ½ lemon
- 2 sprigs parsley, leaves only
- 2½ tbsp (50 grams) extra virgin olive oil
- salt flakes
- black pepper
- 8 raw king prawns (jumbo shrimp), deveined, heads and tails left intact
- 8 thin slices jamón
- oil spray
Thermomix Method
1. Place garlic, lemon zest (peeled in strips) and parsley in mixing bowl. Chop 4 sec/speed 8. Scrape down sides of mixing bowl.
2. Add olive oil, lemon juice and salt and pepper, to taste. Stir 6 sec/speed 4.
3. Rinse the prawns and pat dry with paper towel, then coat them in the marinade. Wrap the jamón around the middle of each prawn and slide them onto the skewers, through the tail and out the head.
4. Heat a barbecue or large flat grill plate to high. Spray the surface with oil and cook the prawns for 3–4 minutes each side, until the jamón is starting to crisp and the prawn flesh has turned pink.
Serve hot.
Traditional Method
1. Mince garlic and finely chop parsley. Combine with olive oil, finely grated lemon zest and lemon juice, and salt and pepper, to taste, in a bowl.
2. Rinse the prawns and pat dry with paper towel, then coat them in the marinade. Wrap the jamón around the middle of each prawn and slide them onto the skewers, through the tail and out the head.
3. Heat a barbecue or large flat grill plate to high. Spray the surface with oil and cook the prawns for 3–4 minutes each side, until the jamón is starting to crisp and the prawn flesh has turned pink.
Serve hot.
Variations
- Use prosciutto in place of jamón.
More about this recipe
- Try Emma’s other recipes: Bread With Tomato and Sopa Freda de Meló, a cold melon soup.
