To drink: Try Sadie Family Palladius, a sensational blend of viognier, chenin, chardonnay and grenache blanc.
Prawn Caesar wraps
Ingredients
Croutons
- 80ml (1/3 cup) olive oil
- a few fresh thyme sprigs
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 80g ciabatta, cubed with crusts intact
Cesar dressing
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 anchovy fillet
- freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 15ml (1 tbsp) lemon juice
- 2,5ml (½ tsp) Dijon mustard
- 250ml (1 cup) canola oil
- about 50g Parmesan, finely grated
- 16 medium prawns
- salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- juice of 2 lemons
- 30ml (2 tbsp) – 40ml sunflower or canola oil blended with
- olive oil (see Cook’s Tips below)
- 60g butter, diced, for pan-frying
- 4 flour wraps
- 2 heads of cos lettuce, sliced into 2cm strips
- 200g Parmesan, half finely grated, half shaved
- ½ avocado, thinly sliced
- fresh flat-leaf parsley, to garnish
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 180°C.
For the croutons, infuse the olive oil by heating the oil, thyme and garlic in a frying pan over a low heat. Remove from the heat and leave to cool.
Season the ciabatta cubes and mix them with the oil on a baking tray. Toast the croutons for 5 – 7 minutes. Set aside.
For the dressing, mix the egg yolk, anchovy, pepper and lemon juice in a metal or glass bowl. Add the mustard, and while mixing it in, gradually whisk in the oil. It’s important to add the oil slowly enough to allow the dressing to thicken but not split. If this happens, slowly add another yolk to the split mixture. Add the Parmesan and whisk.
Remove the shells of the prawns and slice each prawn open from head to tail to butterfly it. Remove the dark central vein. Season with salt and pepper and a good squeeze of lemon juice.
Heat a heavy-based frying pan over a high heat. Add the oil, and a few seconds later the butter to reduce the temperature and add flavour. Fry the prawns at high heat for about 1 minute on each side. (If you’re cooking them on the braai, baste the prawns with the oil only and cook them directly above the fire.)
Just before serving, heat the wraps for 1 minute in a dry frying pan or over a braai grid.
Toss the lettuce, grated Parmesan and dressing together. Place the wraps on serving plates and top with the lettuce mixture, prawns, Parmesan shavings and avocado. Garnish with the parsley.
Notes
Cook's tips: Blending sunflower or canola oil with olive oil prevents bitterness when it’s used at high temperatures. Taste the dressing frequently to find a balance of egg to anchovy and cheese. Parmesan shouldn’t be a main flavour; yolks taste raw if not emulsified correctly; and the saltiness of the anchovies shouldn’t dominate the dish.
