Prawns a la Plancha with Nam Jim
( SERVES 4 )

NZ Herald 3/11/2010

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Martin Bosley

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I love cooking on the plancha - Spanish for hot metal plate - for the searing heat and golden crust you can get on seafood. The aromatic and spicy Thai sauce nam jim is the hottest condiment we use in the restaurant and is perfect with the prawns.

Nam Jim Dressing

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10	Red chillies, small, halved lengthwise, seeded and roughly chopped
3 stalks	Coriander, roots attached
2	Garlic cloves
3 cm	Fresh ginger, peeled
50 g	Palm sugar, grated
60 ml	Fish sauce
250 ml	Lemon juice

Prawns

12	Prawns, choose large king prawns, peeled with the heads left on
1 tsp	Coriander seeds, crushed
1 tsp	Curry powder
3 tbsp	Extra virgin olive oil
1 to taste	Salt
1	Lemon, juiced

Directions

Nam Jim Dressing

Place the chillies in a blender with the coriander, garlic and ginger. Pulse to a thick paste, then add the palm sugar.
Continue to blend until the sugar has dissolved before adding the fish sauce and lemon juice.
Season to taste with more fish sauce if required. The dressing should be hot and sour.

Prawns a la Plancha

De-vein the prawns by cutting down the back with a sharp knife and removing the thin black intestine. Rinse the prawns briefly in cold water. Mix the coriander seeds with the curry powder and oil, and marinate the prawns in this mixture for 20-30 minutes.
Then insert a wooden skewer from the base of the tail towards the head of the prawn. Grill the prawns on a hot plancha or sauté in a hot frying pan.
Season with salt and a squeeze of lemon juice. Serve the prawns with the nam jim in a shot glass alongside.