Spot Prawn season. It’s here, and it’s only here for a few short (but mighty tasty) weeks (approximately 80 days).
I have a soft spot for these little gems of the sea, and it’s not just because they are sweet, with a delicate flavour and texture or because they are ridiculously easy to cook. No, my soft spot for these guys is because they are available within a few miles of my home. They are genuinely sustainable and are caught using traps and long lines. What more could an outspoken critic of eating local want in her seafood? I can literally buy them off the back of a boat if I could find them before everyone else does, but I tend to head to my local seafood shop instead. Buying from local merchants in an effort to spread my money around makes me feel like I can do something, even something small, to help the local economy.
Although these fine specimens may not be available in your area, this recipe could be used with any locally available prawn or large shrimp. I’d beg you not to use Asian produced tiger prawns, but instead, I’ll just point you in the direction of some very good information on the subject. See SeaChoice for more information.
On another note, this baby is on it’s way in the next two weeks and I just want to make sure you all know that. I am trying very hard to make sure there are recipe ready to go for when I am indisposed. My Momma is here and she’s cooking up a storm, so look forward to some down home cooking (Jambalaya! Ribs!) coming soon!
Prawn and Paneer Skewers
Yield: 2 Servings
Prep Time: 15-20 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutesFor the Skewers:
1 Tbsp white miso paste
1 Tbsp Japanese mayonnaise
1 Tbsp seasoned rice vinegar
1 Tbsp Dijon
1 clove garlic, minced or grated
Fresh ground pepper, to taste
12 fresh spot prawns, heads removed, deveined and peeled1. In small bowl combine miso, Japanese mayo, rice vinegar, Dijon, garlic and pepper. Stir in prawns, making sure to coat evenly. Set aside to marinate for 30 minutes or more.
2 Tbsp white miso paste
1 Tbsp sesame oil
1 Tbsp seasoned rice vinegar
Fresh ground pepper, to taste
250 g Paneer, cut into large cubes1. In a small bowl, combine the miso, sesame oil, rice vinegar and pepper. Toss in the paneer to coat and set aside for 30 minutes or more.
To assemble skewers:
1. Thread cheese and prawns onto skewers*, alternating between the two until none remain.
2. Grill over a medium hot flame until done (about 4 minutes).
3. Serve over salad.*If using wooden skewers, be sure to soak for 30 minutes prior to cooking to prevent burning.
For Salad:
3 cups baby spinach leaves
12 gem tomatoes (or other cherry or strawberry tomatoes)
4 Brown crimini mushrooms
small handful of thinly sliced red onions
12 stalks grilled asparagus, woody ends removed **1. Directly on plates, distribute spinach evenly, followed by the tomatoes, mushrooms and onions.
2. Lay grilled asparagus over top, followed by skewers. Serve with dressing of your choice.
** To make grilled asparagus: Preheat oven to 500°F. Place asparagus stalks on heat proof baking pan, pour on a little oil and salt and pepper, roll them around to coat and roast for about 10 minutes. Stir every minute or so to prevent burning.
And they were damn fine too!
WOW! The title got me but the pictures, wow, I’m sold! Must try these – so perfect for summer!
xxMK
Delightful Bitefuls
.-= Mary´s last blog ..Rice, Asparagus & Avocado Salad =-.
Yay for local seafood!
But long line fishing is actually a really irresponsible way to fish. Basically, massively long fishing lines, with baited hooks evenly spaced out, just hang out in the water unsupervised, catching whatever chomps by, including turtles, sharks, and other non targeted species. If these animals are still on the line when the fishermen come to reel in their catch (most animals die from stress, starvation, or suffocation) they are cut off the line, usually with the hook still in their mouth or throat. This is serious bad news for turtles especially.
All that being said, I would be surprised that shrimp would be fished with long lines. Because they are so small, they are often caught using trawl nets, massive contraptions that scoop up everything in their path, again, often catching unsuspecting turtles. There are contraptions to put in trawl nets so turtles can escape, but they aren’t always used or installed correctly, resulting in thousands of turtle deaths at the hands of shrimp fishing each year.
Sorry to be such a downer! But shrimp are just one of those delicious treasures of the sea that are getting harder and harder to eat ethically and sustainably. Wild caught shrimp are the best and local is always a plus!
For more info, check out http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/cr/seafoodwatch.aspx
.-= Tatiana´s last blog ..Glug, glug =-.
Tatiana,
As the link I posted said, BC spot prawns (specifically, Vancouver Island, where I live) uses an extremely sustainable fishing method using long lines (more like ropes) that are attached to small traps known as “pots”. If you’ve ever watched “Deadliest Catch”, than you would know what I mean. They are very similar, except the spot prawn traps are MUCH smaller. Here is a quote from
“Harvest Method: Spot prawns are commercially harvested in traps deployed on long-lines commonly from 55 metres to 90 metres (180 feet to 295 feet) onto the ocean’s rocky bottom. Prawn traps vary in size, can be either oblong or cylindrical in shape and feature about 2 or 3 funnel-shaped openings each. These baited traps are laid out along a bottom line with the position of the traps marked with surface buoys.”
AND
“Sustainability: A number of measures have been implemented over the years to sustain the industry including: limitation on the number of licences; trap per licence limitations; harvest log requirements; minimum mesh size restrictions; minimum harvest size requirements; required trap escapement modifications; vessel length restrictions; hail requirements; single haul per day limitations; maximum trap volume; implementation of a monitoring program; collection of management fees by licence holders, and; fishery closures implemented when the number of spawners falls below a predefined level.”
Source: BC Seafood Online
Obviously, I would not condone the eating of shrimp being caught with trawl nets, as this is not sustainable. I appreciate the comment, but perhaps you did not look at the links I posted or read what I actually wrote in the article?
Adore your blog–way impressed with your multiplicity of talents. Re: photography/food: You have such a great eye for color!
And kudos for cooking responsibly! I love season awareness with foods. Something to work on this year!
.-= Hannah´s last blog ..Summer Fare #2: Jennifer’s Pasta and Stuffed Baby Bella Mushrooms =-.
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