Wondering what your next Thai Tuesday meal will be? What about a homemade king prawn Thai red curry? It only takes 15 minutes to cook with under 10 minutes of prep time, it is so easy, quick and full of so much flavour. Weeknight dinners have never been so simple!
How to Prepare King Prawns
If you have purchased fresh prawns with the shell-on, you’ll need to peel them. Firstly, you should firmly grip the body of the prawn with one hand and twist and pull the head off with the other. Once the head is off, turn the prawn over and pull the legs off and peel off the shell using your fingers. Go along the length of the belly, working down from the top towards the tail. I like to keep the tail on the prawn by leaving the last section of the shell on, but if you prefer to have the entire shell removed, simply take the tail off.
Once the shell is removed, check to see if there is a black line running down the back of the prawn. This is the intestinal tract and removing it is called ‘deveining’. If the intestinal tract is black, it means it’s full and it can be a bit gritty if eaten, so it’s better to remove it. Using a knife, make a shallow cut along the length of the prawn’s back and then pull out the intestinal tract using the tip of the knife or toothpick.
Lastly, to butterfly a prawn, simply make the shallow cut from before a deeper one by carefully gliding the knife down to around half way into the prawn. Gently open up the back with your fingers and then repeat to the remaining prawns.
How to Make King Prawn Thai Red Curry
Start off by heating oil into a large saucepan. Wait until the oil is hot and starts to run across the pan, then add in your Mae Jum Thai Red curry paste. Blend the paste into the oil and allow the fry for a couple of minutes before adding in the thick layer of coconut milk from the can. Blend well together and simmer this thick sauce to let natural oils within the pastes to appear and rise to the surface, this will give the curry more flavour and colour.
Once the coconut milk starts to bubble, add fish sauce and palm sugar and mix well. This might darken the colour, but that’s okay as the colour will be bright and bold by the end once you add the remaining coconut milk later! Now that the sauce is coming together, it is time to add sweet mini peppers and choi sum. Stir-fry the vegetables until they are fully coated and add in a little more coconut milk, perhaps 100ml and allow to simmer for a few minutes.
Now it’s time for the king prawns! Add the king prawns into the saucepan, giving each one a bit of space. Leave it on a gentle simmer for a couple of minutes before gently flipping over the prawns. Prawns cook very quickly, only about 5 minutes, so make sure you keep an eye on them.
This dish is almost finished, turn off the heat and take a generous handful of fresh Thai basil and add to the curry and gently stir in, you could also add more fresh chillies too for some extra spice! All that’s left to do is serve up with steamed Thai Jasmine rice, sit down and enjoy! I hope you love this king prawn Thai red curry just as much as I do!
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King Prawn Thai Red Curry
Delicious and king prawn Thai Red curry with Choi Sum and Sweet Pepper!
- 500 g King Prawns
- 35 g Mae Jum Thai Red Curry Paste
- 150 g Mixed Sweet Mini Peppers
- 200 g Choi Sum
- 300 ml Coconut milk
- 1 tbsp Fish Sauce
- 1 tbsp Palm Sugar
- 1 tbsp Shrimp paste (optional)
- Handful Thai Basil (Garnish)
Preparation
Thinly slice mixed sweet mini peppers
Roughly chop choi sum in quarters
Peel, devein and butterfly king prawns - see blog for description
Method
Heat oil into a large saucepan on medium/high heat, then stir-fry curry paste to build aroma. Add 100ml coconut milk to loosen the mix and bring to a simmer for a couple of minutes
Add fish sauce and palm sugar, shrimp paste (optional) and mix well
Add the remaining 200ml coconut milk with sweet mini peppers and choi sum, simmer for 5 minutes
Add king prawns and cook for a further 5-6 minutes, flipping the prawns half way through.
Turn off heat, and add a handful of Thai basil and stir in before serving with freshly made Thai Jasmine rice. Enjoy!
