This was the first of what will be many times that I cook this dish – It was an instant hit in our household. The cornflour and egg mixture creates a chewy crunchiness when you deep-fry it with the prawns and the honey and garlic sauce is wonderfully sticky and caramelises from the heat of the wok.

The recipe is from Kylie Kwong’s Simple Chinese Cooking and is pretty much spot-on. My only additional tips are to serve with spring onions, freshly sliced cucumber and make sure you pat the prawns dry with a paper towel before you add them to the cornflour mixture (this ensures no extra water goes into the mixture so your prawns will become nice and crispy!)

Here’s the recipe:

Ingredients:

10 large raw tiger prawns, peeled and de-veined (leave tails intact)

3 teaspoons cornflour

2 teaspoons water

2 teaspoons light soy sauce

1 egg yolk, lightly beaten

1 teaspoon sesame oil

Vegetable oil for deep-frying

1 Spring onion (green onion), sliced on the diagonal (for garnish)

For the honey & garlic sauce:

2 tablespoons honey

2 tablespoons shao hsing wine or dry sherry

2 garlic cloves, finely diced

5 teaspoons light soy sauce

Method:

1)   Blend cornflour and water until dissolved

2)   Add prawns, soy sauce, egg and sesame oil and mix well

3)   Combine honey & garlic sauce ingredients in a bowl and set aside

4)   Heat oil on high heat in a wok until the surface shimmers slightly

5)   Deep-fry half the prawns for 1 minute

6)   Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on kitchen paper

7)   Repeat with the rest of the prawns

8)   Drain the oil from the wok (you can save it for later in a jar)

9)   Wipe the wok clean with kitchen paper

10)   Heat the same wok to moderate heat and add the honey & garlic sauce ingredients

11)   Simmer for about 1 ½ minutes

12)   Add the prawns till they are hot and just cooked through

13)   Garnish with spring onion and serve immediately. Serves 2-3 with steamed rice

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