Prawns
Flavour Profile
Sweet, mild and briny. Prawns have a distinct snap when cooked correctly and a clean, savoury finish that carries bold spices and citrus exceptionally well.
Health Benefits
Prawns are mostly protein, which is good for building and repairing. You'll also get some B12 for energy and selenium for protecting your cells. If you're after serious nutrition, they're not a top-tier contender, but they're not bad either.
Buying Tips
Fresh prawns should smell like the ocean, not like ammonia. If you're buying them head-on, look for bright, clear eyes and shells that don't feel slimy or soft.
Most prawns are frozen at sea, so a high-quality frozen prawn is often better than a 'fresh' prawn that has been sitting on a bed of ice for three days. Look for the 'IQF' label – Individually Quick Frozen.
Storage
Prawns perish quickly. If fresh, eat them the day you buy them.
If you are defrosting frozen prawns, do it slowly in the fridge or under cold running water. Never use warm water or the microwave unless you want to ruin the texture before you’ve even started.
Cooking Uses
Prawns are the ultimate fast food. They take minutes to cook.
Fry them in garlic butter, throw them into a laksa, or grill them on the barbecue. They are done the second they turn opaque and curl into a 'C' shape. Overcook them and they turn into rubber balls.
Forkin Food Theory
Don't throw away the shells and heads. That is where all the money is.
Prawn shells are packed with chitin and proteins that, when toasted in oil or simmered in water, release a depth of savoury flavour you simply cannot get from the meat alone.
If you want a sauce or risotto to taste like a professional chef made it, you need to make a quick stock with the 'waste'. No shells, no soul.
Wild & Wonderful
Cooked vs raw, shell-on vs peeled, head-on vs headless — all different products with different uses.
For flavour, shell-on and head-on win every time. The shells go into a quick stock; the heads contain the brain-like hepatopancreas which is concentrated prawn flavour. Pre-peeled supermarket prawns are convenient and bland.
Frozen raw prawns are often better than "fresh" supermarket prawns, which are nearly always previously frozen and defrosted on the counter. Buying them frozen and defrosting them slowly in the fridge yourself gives you control.
The dark vein along the back is the digestive tract. It's safe to eat but visually unappealing and sometimes gritty. Slit and remove it on larger prawns.
Overcooked prawns go from tender to rubber in about 20 seconds. They cook fast — 2-3 minutes total is plenty.