Pan-fried prawns in shell

Ingredientsserves 4

Method

1. Snip off each prawn's spike, eyes, whiskers and legs with scissors, cut along the back and lift out the vein with a toothpick; keep the heads on, because that is where the flavour is.
2. Stir the ketchup, sugar, black vinegar, dark soy, Worcestershire, a tablespoon of water and a pinch of white pepper together for the sauce.
3. Pat the prawns dry and dust them lightly with cornflour; HK01 gives two reasons, it keeps the juices in and helps the sauce cling.
4. Heat the oil in a flat pan until very hot, lay the prawns in and fry two to three minutes a side without moving them, until the shells are red and blistered. Lift out.
5. Fry the shallot, garlic and ginger in the same pan for twenty seconds.
6. Return the prawns, pour in the sauce, cover for one to two minutes, then uncover and toss until the sauce is a glaze on the shells; the prawns are done when the flesh is opaque all the way through. Scatter the spring onion and serve.

Take care

• Contains crustacean (prawn); the Worcestershire contains fish (anchovy) and soy; the dark soy contains soy and wheat. Prawns are cooked when the flesh is opaque all the way through, two to three minutes a side for a 50 g prawn. Do not refreeze thawed raw prawns.

The story

碌 is the Cantonese word for a chunky piece, so 蝦碌 is a whole big prawn. It is the prawn dish of the Hong Kong New Year and birthday table because whole prawns in a red sauce look like money, and Hong Kong columns headline it as the reunion-dinner dish and the festival must-have. The ketchup finish is another touch of soy-sauce Western food, and the dry-pan method comes from the dai pai dong, where the pan was hot and the oil was for frying something else.

Same technique

Pan-fried dace fish cakesEgg dumplingsStuffed peppers, eggplant and tofu

Lo Fo Tong is cultural food-heritage reference, not medical advice. If you are pregnant, unwell or on medication, talk to your doctor or registered practitioner before changing what is in the pot.