Prawns in coconut and ginger sauce with Thai rice

In summer we love enjoying light, healthy meals. It's a great time to get lots of use out of the grill and, of course, also the wok. The recipe Virginia brings us, author of Sweet&Sour, is sure to delight you, as it's very easy to make, tasty, and very original.

Today it's a quick, international meal, with a very Thai-inspired combination. Thai prawns with coconut and ginger, with a slightly spicy touch, softened by the aromatic note of coconut milk.

In the photo, Bérard olive wood cutting board, and Ken Hom wok.

These prawns, as you can imagine, we won't be serving with bread—it would be almost sacrilege—but with Thai rice or Jasmine rice, with its aromatic, delicate fragrance, which goes perfectly with the coconut sauce. The rice will soak up and catch all the sauce, and each bite will be like being transported to a remote corner of Thailand.

Freshly made it's divine, but to my taste, if we let it rest for 1 hour, it's even better, as this gives the stew time to settle and blend the flavors, and you have no idea how much. That said, don't overdo the heat when reheating the dish, or you'll ruin the prawns with coconut milk.

I made it in my Wok Ken-Hom, which allowed me to stir-fry the onions and prawns very quickly, at high temperature, leaving them perfectly juicy, as I explained when we talked about "Cooking with Wok", but in addition the wok is not only for stir-frying, it also served to cook this dish afterward, in just 6-8 minutes, with this exquisite coconut and ginger sauce, which is finger-licking good. As you can see, a quick, complete dish for a special meal, so we don't spend time in the kitchen, especially now that good weather has arrived and all we want is to go out and enjoy the fresh air.

Among the spices we used to prepare the seasoning is turmeric, which gives it that intense yellow color. Traditionally known as the "queen of spices". Let's get to the recipe!

Ingredients

(For 4 servings)

• 2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
• 4 cloves garlic, crushed
• 2 teaspoons ground turmeric
• 1 small red chili, seeded and very finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar or white vinegar
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil
• 2 onions, cut into thin wedges
• 500gr fresh prawns (tails only, unpeeled)
• 2 peeled, seeded tomatoes, cut into small cubes
• 180ml coconut milk
• Ground black pepper
• Fresh cilantro
• Salt
• Thai rice

Preparation

First, we cook the Thai rice:

Thai rice is a long-grain rice, slightly translucent, usually cooked in bamboo baskets over steam. In this case, we can also cook it with our wok, filling the wok with water and placing the bamboo basket on top, without touching the water, using the same process as the traditional Western method, but instead of keeping it in the water for 10 minutes, we'll steam it for 20 minutes. Everything else stays the same.

1. To cook it the traditional Western way, we wash the rice under cold running tap water to remove excess starch and keep it from becoming sticky. Although it doesn't have as much starch as our round rice, it's still a good idea to do this. If we're going to steam it, we can even soak it for a couple of hours and the cooking time will be cut in half (10 minutes).
2. Put a medium, heavy-bottomed saucepan over high heat and add 1 cup of rice and 1 cup of water. The heavy bottom of our pan will help keep the rice from burning. Still, keep an eye on it. When it starts to boil, add the salt, lower the heat to medium-low, and cover the pan. Let it cook for about 10 minutes, until the rice is tender. Remove from the heat and let it rest for about 5-10 minutes without uncovering the pan.
3. Fluff the rice with a fork, separating the grains, and transfer to a bowl. Set aside.

Let's move on to the prawns in coconut and ginger sauce:

First of all, we'll prepare all our ingredients, "mise en place", since as I've already warned you, this dish takes less than 15 minutes to make, but we must have everything ready in advance to add it to our wok.

1. We start by preparing the seasoning that will give our dish its color and flavor. I use the coffee grinder (I don't use it for anything else anymore), but you can also do it in the mortar. Mix the grated ginger, the pressed or crushed garlic, the ground turmeric, the finely chopped seedless chili, and the vinegar. Blend until a thick yellow paste forms, and set aside.
2. Peel the onions and cut them into thin wedges. Set aside.
3. Peel and seed the tomato and cut it into cubes.
4. Remove the heads from the prawns (they'll be used to make an exquisite seafood stock) and keep the tails whole, unpeeled. Set aside.
5. Put our wok on the heat. When it starts to smoke, add the two tablespoons of sesame oil and the onions, sautéing without stopping to stir at any time, either with a wooden spoon, or with wrist movements, swirling the onions around the pan. Add the seasoning almost immediately and keep stirring everything so it gets coated, until the onions are soft (2 minutes).
6. Add the prawns and stir-fry for another 2 minutes in the same way, until they take on that lovely orange color.
7. Add the tomato and stir-fry it for another 2 minutes with the rest of the ingredients.
8. Now it's time to add the coconut milk. Mix well, cover, and let it cook over low heat for about 6 minutes, until the sauce thickens slightly and the prawns are tender. Done.
9. Add the ground pepper, and adjust the salt to taste.
10. Serve topped with chopped cilantro and accompanied by our Thai rice.

Enjoy.
Virginia.