← Nouns Cooking · Japanese

Ingredients

• 300 g large raw prawns, peeled and deveined
• ¼ tsp Salt
• 1 pinch White pepper
• 1 tbsp Sake
• 1 tbsp potato starch or cornflour
• 2 tbsp Vegetable oil
• 2 cloves Garlic, finely chopped
• 1 tsp Ginger, finely chopped
• 2 spring onions (white parts), finely chopped
• 2 tsp doubanjiang (chilli bean paste)
• 3 tbsp Ketchup
• 120 ml chicken stock or water
• 1 tbsp Sake
• 1½ tsp Sugar
• 1 tsp Soy sauce
• 1 tbsp potato starch or cornflour, mixed with 2 tbsp water
• 1 tsp Toasted sesame oil

Method

1. Pat the prawns dry and toss them with the salt, white pepper and sake, then with the tablespoon of starch. Mix the ketchup, stock, sake, sugar and soy sauce in a jug.
2. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Fry the prawns for about 1 minute per side, until just pink but not fully cooked. Tip onto a plate.
3. Add the rest of the oil and lower the heat to medium. Fry the garlic, ginger and most of the spring onion with the doubanjiang for 1 minute, until the oil turns red and smells fragrant.
4. Pour in the sauce mix and bring to a simmer. Return the prawns and cook for 1–2 min, until they are opaque all the way through.
5. Stir the starch slurry, pour it in and stir for 30 seconds, until the sauce turns thick and glossy. Turn off the heat, add the sesame oil and the remaining spring onion, and serve with rice.

Tips

• Doubanjiang strength varies, so start with 1 tsp if you prefer it mild; a beaten egg stirred in at the end makes it milder still.
• For gluten-free, check your doubanjiang and use tamari.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

Just One Cookbook Japanese Cooking 101