Everything You Need To Know About Chilli Seafood Recipes

You may notice that in prawn, yabby, and marron recipes below, I frequently do not bother to remove the intestine from the tails. There are two reason for this; one, most commercially available shellfish have been purged in clean water before sale, and ; two, it's a fiddly job that I don't really believe is worth the hassle. In the end, it's up to you.

The Chilli Seafood Recipes

Prawn Ceviche

makes 12 serves

• 1.5kg prawns, peeled, deveined
• 2 large tomatoes, diced
• 1 red onion, finely diced
• 1 bunch fresh coriander, chopped
• 1-2 serrano chillies, de-seeded and diced
• 8 limes, juiced
• 8 lemons, juiced
• 2 oranges, juiced
• 2 large avocados, diced
• 1 large cucumber, peeled and diced

Add red onion, tomatoes, chillies and coriander, and season with salt and black pepper - Marinate for 2 more hours.

Garnish with avocados, cucumber and freshly ground black pepper before serving.

Sweet Chilli Lime Prawns

I adapted this recipe from one I found on one of the multitude of blogs that I read and it is fantastic

• 1kg large prawns (e.g. king, banana, or tiger prawns)
• Juice and zest of 2 limes
• 1 - 1.5 cups brown sugar
• 2 tbsp freshly grated ginger
• 3-4 cloves garlic, finely diced
• 1-2 tbsp jalapeno or serrano chillies, diced
• 1 tsp dried coriander powder

Soak some bamboo skewers overnight (or use steel ones like me), making sure you have one for each prawn.

Remove the shells from the prawn's tail, leaving the heads intact. Remove the intestine from the back by cutting a small slit with a knife and fishing it out with the point.

Just before cooking, thread each prawn onto a skewer by holding it firmly in hand, inserting the skewer from between the tail fins and up the body up into the head.

Fire up the barbeque (or grill) and just before cooking, give them a light brush with some melted butter to stop them sticking. Grill them for no more than 2-3 minutes each side, removing them to a plate once they lose their opaque colour and are nice and fragrant.

Serve with some steamed rice and a simple citrussy salad and enjoy!

Salt & Pepper squid
makes 4 serves

This is how I cook this seafood classic at home.

• 3 (about 600g) large cleaned squid hoods
• 1L (4 cups) vegetable oil
• 40g (1/4 cup) plain flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp ground white pepper
• 1 tsp Chinese five-spice
• 1/2 tsp chilli powder
• Lemon wedges and soy sauce with
• sliced fresh red chilli, to serve

Use a sharp knife to cut through 1 side of each squid hood lengthways. Open out flat with inside surface facing up and score surface diagonally. Cut into 3.5cm squares and pat dry with paper towel.

Heat the oil in a large wok over medium heat until it reaches 190°C on a oil thermometer. (Or, add a 5cm cube of bread to the oil - it should turn light golden in 10 seconds.)

Meanwhile, combine the flour, salt, pepper, Chinese five-spice and chilli powderin a medium bowl. Add the squid and toss gently to coat.

Remove half of the squid from the flour mixture and shake off any excess. Add to the oil and cook, turning with a slotted metal spoon, for 2 minutes or until the squid just turns golden and curls.

Use the slotted spoon to transfer the squid to a large plate lined with paper towel to drain. Reheat the oil in the wok to 190°C. Repeat with the remaining squid.

Serve immediately with the lemon wedges and chilli-soy sauce (if you haven't got any, just soak some chopped, hot chillies in the soy sauce for a couple of hours before using) and cold lager.

Crab Cakes with Lemon Garlic Sauce,

Makes 6 serves

• 3/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1/3 cup plus 2 teaspoons lemon juice, divided use
• 6 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1.5 teasp salt
• 3/4 teaspoon freshly black pepper
• 600g fresh crab meat
• 1.5 cups bread crumbs
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 2 teasp chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 3 eggs
• 1.5 teasp Worcestershire sauce
• 3/4 teasp cayenne powder
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 2 teasp olive oil

Lemon-Garlic Sauce:

In a small bowl, combine mayonnaise with half the amount of each: lemon juice, garlic, salt and black pepper.

Mix well and set aside.
Crab Cakes:

Check the crab meat for pieces of shell and gently squeeze out any excess moisture.

Combine crab meat, bread crumbs and parsley in a medium bowl.

In another bowl, whisk together the egg, Worcestershire sauce and cayenne with the remaining lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper.

Pour over the crab mixture and mix gently until thoroughly combined.

Divide mixture into 4 equal portions and flatten into 2cm thick cakes.

Heat a medium sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add olive oil and swirl to coat.

When the oil is hot, add the crab cakes and cook for 3 to 4 minutes per side until golden brown and crispy.

Serve immediately with reserved lemon-garlic sauce.

Keralan Special Seafood Curry

The below recipe is a true Keralan classic as indicated by the presence of Kudampuli in the ingredient list. This is difficult, but not impossible, to obtain if you have an asian store that has an Indian bent to it.

Kudampuli, othwerwise known as Keralan tamarind, is the dried rind of the fruit of the Gambooge tree and is used in Kerala fairly exclusively for giving a sour taste to fish curries.

If you can't get it, substitute in some tamarind pulp as it is sort of the same.

• 500g (1 lb)fish fillets
• 200g (7oz) prawn flesh, raw but peeled
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 1 teasp tumeric powder
• 2 teasp coriander seed powder
• 1 teasp ground black pepper
• 3 green cayenne chillies (or similar), de-seeded and coarsely chopped
• 2 teasp chilli powder (choose your preferred heat level)
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 2-3cm (1 inch)piece ginger, thinly sliced
• 1 cup (250 ml)(8.5 fl oz)water
• 2 cups (500 ml) (17 fl oz) coconut cream
• 4 pieces Kudampuli, or substitute in 2 teasp tamarind pulp(no seeds)
• 1 teasp yellow mustard seeds
• 1/2 teasp fenugreek seeds
• 6 curry leaves
• salt
• 2 tablesp vegetable oil

Heat vegetable oil on high and add the mustard and fenugreek seeds and let them pop.

Add the onion and garlic and saute on medium until the onion is clear.

Then add the ginger and when this becomes fragrant add the salt, tumeric, coriander seed, and black pepper and stir for few seconds.

Add the tomato, kudampuli (or tamarind pulp) and one cup water and one cup of the coconut cream and simmer until the tomato is cooked.

Then add fish fillets, prawns and the remaining 1 cup coconut milk. Cook till it is done on a low heat.

When the oil begins to float on top, place the green chillies and curry leaves over it.

Keep the lid closed and remove from heat and let stand for 5 minutes.

Serve with rice and I'd also suggest a glass or two of chilled riesling.

Gambas al Pil Pil (Spicy Pan-Fried Prawns)
makes 8 serves

Prawns are plentiful off the coast of Spain and no tapas bar would dare to open without some version of garlic prawns on the menu.

• 500g medium prawns, peeled and deveined (any size prawn is good as long as it's not the little cocktail ones out of the tins)
• 4 whole garlic cloves plus 1 teasp minced garlic
• 2 tablsp lime juice
• 2 tablsp butter
• ½ teasp ground paprika
• ½ teasp crushed piquin chillies
• 1 tablsp sea salt
• 2 tablsp dry sherry
• 3 tablsp olive oil, virgin

Heat the oil in a heavy frying pan over moderately high heat with the whole garlic until hot but not smoking. Add the prawns and cook for a few seconds to seal in the flavor and then remove.

Pour out all of the oil and discard the garlic. Return the prawns to the frying pan and reheat over medium-high heat. Pour the lime juice over the prawn and add the butter, minced garlic, paprika, piquins, and sherry.

Simmer until the prawns have turned pink, which will only take a couple of minutes.

Take care to not overcook them as it ruins both the flavour and the texture of the prawns.

Serve with your favourite white wine or rose, chilled, and watch a sunset with some friends.

Prawn Cocktails On A Stick

I was inspired to develop this recipe by an Australian movie called Take Away that had a character, Trev, played by Steven Curry, who owned a fish & chip shop and whose idea of innovation was to put everything on a stick; dim sims, potato fritters, everything.

Don't let that put you off - these cocktails taste great and are extremely easy.

The Cocktails

• 24 cooked king prawns, peeled (tails left intact), deveined
• 2 avocados, cut into 2cm cubes, lightly salted and drizzled with lime juice

The Cocktail Sauce

• 1 1/2 tablsp tomato sauce (preferably one you made yourself)
• 1/2 cup whole-egg mayonnaise (I use Thomy at home)
• 1 teasp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teasp Tabasco, or, preferably, your own favourite Louisiana-style hot sauce
• 1 lime, juiced

Taste and add more hot sauce, if desired. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Skewer 1 prawn and 1 piece avocado onto each cocktail stick.

Arrange on a plate and serve with cocktail sauce.

Piri-Piri Prawns
makes 4 serves Piri piri is style that comes out of southern Africa and has it's roots in the strong Portuguese influence in that area's cuisine.
For an Australian twist, substitute yabbies for prawns !

• 1 kg large raw prawns
• 4 red cayenne chillies, deseeded
• 7 birds eye chillies
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 185ml white wine vinegar
• 0.5 cup olive oil
• 150g mixed lettuce leaves

De-head and de-shell the prawns and store in the fridge.

OK, now we need to make the sauce/marinade. Put the cayennes and the vinegar on a saucepan and simmer for approximately 5-7 minutes, until the chillies go soft.

Put the cayennes, 60ml of the vinegar, the birds eye chillies, and the garlic in a food processor and blend until smooth. Then, with the motor still running, gradually add the oil and remaining vinegar.

Take enough of the marinade out to cover the prawns and keep the marinading prawns in the fridge.

Heat the barbecue or grill plate up to high heat, and cook the prawns for 2 minutes each side, basting with marinade while they cook.

Arrange the lettuce leaves on four plates and top it with the prawns and a little of the sauce (not the portion used as marinade). Serve immediately with a cold beer or chilled white wine.

Grilled Baby Octopus - Fusion Style

makes 3-4 serves

• 1kg baby octopus, cleaned (i.e. beaks cut out and rinsed to remove any seaweed)
• ¼ cup (60ml) sweet chilli sauce
• ¼ cup (60ml) tomato sauce (ketchup)
• 1 cup chopped fresh coriander leaves & stems
• 2 tablsp soy sauce
• 2 tablsp balsamic vinegar
• 300ml red wine

Combine the vinegar and the wine in a saucepan with octopus

Bring to boil over the wok-burner and then reduce heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes

Drain octopus, place in a bowl with soy, chilli, and tomato sauces and stir to combine and let it marinade for 15 minutes if you've got the time

Then, with the heat on high, grill octopus for 5-6 minutes, turning occasionally, until cooked or lightly charred

Garnish with coriander and serve

Grilled Baby Octopus - Italian Style

makes 3-4 serves

• 1 kg baby octopus
• 1 lemon, juice of
• 1 litre vegetable stock
• 300 ml white wine
• 250 ml olive oil
• 100 ml balsamic vinegar
• 50 ml white wine
• 1 red mild chilli, de-seeded and finely chopped
• 50 ml lemon juice
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• ground black pepper

Bring stock, lemon juice, and 300ml white wine to boiling, then add the octopus, reduce the heat and simmer gently until octopus is tender (about 20-30 minutes).

Drain and cool

Mix the olive oil, vinegar,chilli, and 50ml white wine and garlic together for the marinade

Pour over cooked octopus and let stand for at least three hours or preferably overnight

Heat barbecue to very hot and quickly char-grill the octopus until crispy

Sprinkle with black pepper and serve with wedges of lemon

Grilled Bacon Wrapped Prawns

makes 4 serves

Much as I hate clichés, this is a wonderfully flavoured variation of the Aussie "shrimp on the barbie" !

• 24 large, raw prawns, shelled and deveined
• 12 bacon slices, cut in half, at right angle to their length
• 2 tablsp butter
• ½ cup chopped onion
• 3/4 cup tomato sauce (or ketchup)
• 1 tablsp tomato paste
• 2½ tablsp Worcestershire sauce
• ½ teasp yellow mustard powder
• ¼ teasp cayenne pepper
• 3 tablsp brown sugar
• 1 tablsp white vinegar
• ¼ cup water

Melt the butter in a medium saucepan.

Add the onion and saute until soft and transparent.

Stir in the tomato sauce, tomato paste, water, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, sugar, mustard powder and pepper.

Stirring continuously, simmer uncovered for 15 minutes and then remove from heat.

Immediately stir the prawns into the sauce, covering them completely and let them marinate in it for around 15 minutes.

Spray a little oil onto your open grill rack and then preheat the grill on high (don't do this the other way around - the spray may catch alight).

Remove the prawns from the sauce. Wrap each prawn in a piece of bacon and thread 3-4 of the wrapped prawns onto a skewer.

Place the kebabs on the grill and cook for 5to 6 minutes, turning once or twice in that time. Cook until the bacon is crisp.

Serve with grilled fresh vegetables and rice.

Margarita-Grilled Prawn and Avocado Quesadilla

makes about 20 pieces

A great Mexican-styled dish - use as an entree or a mains. You can easily substitute fish or chicken for the prawns in you like.

Margarita Marinade

• ¼ cup tequila
• 1 teasp sugar
• 1 tablsp finely chopped onion
• 2 serrano or jalapeño chillies, deseeded and finely chopped
• 1 teasp chipotle chilli powder (or cayenne if you can't get chipotle powder)
• 1 tablsp fresh coriander leaves & stems, finely chopped
• 2 tablsp vegetable oil

The Prawns and Final Preparation

• ½ kg small prawns, peeled and deveined
• Guacamole - use recipe below or a pre-made
• 2 serrano or jalapeño chillies, deseeded and finely chopped
• 1½ cups aged cheddar chese, grated/shredded
• 6 x 15-18cm (6 7-inch) flour tortillas (sometimes called wraps)
• 1 cup fresh coriander leaves & stems, coarsely chopped
• Vegetable oil

The Guacamole

• 2 avocados, mashed
• ½ roma tomato chopped
• ½ Spanish (red) onion, chopped
• 1 serrano or jalapeño chilli, de-seeded, v finely chopped
• lime juice
• salt

The Guacamole

Mix the avocado, tomato, onion, chilli and 2 teasp of lime juice together in a bowl

Balance the flavour to something you like using the salt and more lime juice.

The Prawns

Grill for about 4 minutes over a medium heat, or until the prawn just turn pink opaque, and then remove from the heat.

Brush one side of 3 tortillas with the oil. Spread the guacamole over the other side of each oil-brushed tortilla, divide the prawns among each, sprinkle with the cheese and coriander, and press firmly together.

Top with the remaining tortillas and brush with oil.

Grill the quesadillas over medium heat, pressing several times with a spatula/hamburger-flipper, until the tortillas start to brown and the cheese melts, turning once–carefully.

Remove from the heat and allow them to cool down for a couple of minutes.

Cut the quesadillas into wedges, top with a dollop of guacamole if you like the idea, and serve.

Pad Thai

Makes 4 serves

You'll probably need a trip to the Asian supermarket before making this Thai classic, but it will be well worth the effort.

• 3 cups thin rice noodles
• 1 chicken thigh fillet, sliced into, small strips
• 4 prawns
• 2 eggs
• 1/3 cup soy bean curd, cut into smaller slivers
• 1 tablsp pickled white raddish, chopped (all asian stores)
• ½ cup cooking oil
• 1 teasp garlic, chopped
• 1 teasp shallot or onion, chopped
• 2 teasp red chilli powder or paprika
• 4 tablsp sugar
• 4 tablsp fish sauce
• 4 tablsp vinegar
• ½ cup bean sprouts
• 4 spring onions, sliced into 2cm (1 inch) long pieces
• ¼ cup carrot, sliced thinly
• ¼ cup cabbage, sliced thinly
• 2 tablespoons roasted peanuts (ground nuts), crushed
• 1 lime, quartered

Add chicken and fry until cooked. Pour in the prawns, pickled white radish, soy bean curd.

Break the eggs into the pan and scramble. Add sugar, fish sauce, vinegar, ground dry red chilli and stir well.

Chilli Prawns on Yellow Noodles

Makes 2 serves

Spicy, tangle and slightly sweet prawns !

• 150g dried yellow noodles or other wheatflour noodles
• 2 tablsp olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
• 6 large garlic cloves, crushed and chopped
• 1 tablsp freshly grated ginger
• 100g snow peas (i.e. in the pod>
• 3 medium red chillies, deseeded and chopped
• 300g fresh raw tiger prawns, shelled and deveined (tail on or off, optional)
• 100ml boiling water
• 1 tablsp lime juice
• 2 spring onions, whole, chopped lengthways
• 4 tablsp freshly chopped coriander, stalks and leaves

For the sauce

• 100ml boiling water
• 4 tablsp tomato paste
• 1 teasp turmeric powder
• 2 tablsp light soy sauce
• 1 tablsp brown sugar
• 2 teasp corn flour

Prepare the noodles according to the instructions on the packet, drain and immediately refresh under cold running water to rinse away the starch and keep them springy. Set aside.

Mix all the ingredients for the sauce and set aside.

Heat a wok over high heat and add the olive oil. Add the garlic, chillies, ginger and stir fry for a few seconds, then add the prawns and snow peas and stir fry until the prawns start to go pink.

Stir in the sauce ingredients and cook for less than 1 minute, then add the 100ml boiling water, lime juice, spring onion and coriander.

Refresh the prepared noodles under boiling water, then drizzle with some olive oil and divide between 2 bowls.

Place the prawns on top of the noodles and serve immediately.

Laksa Lemak

makes 4 serves

• 200g (7 oz) vermicelli noodles
• 400g (14 oz) hokkien noodles
• 70g (2½ oz) laksa paste available from many supermarkets any asian store
• 1 lemon grass stem, white part only, bruised
• 600g (1.3 lb)firm white fish fillets (snapper is good), cut into 3cm pieces
• 12 black mussels, debearded, scrubbed
• 1 bunch snake beans, trimmed, cut into 8cm lengths
• 150g (5¼ oz) bean sprouts, trimmed
• Fresh mint leaves, to serve
• Lime wedges, to serve
• 2 x 400ml(13.5 fl oz) cans coconut cream
• 500ml (17 fl oz) chicken stock
• 1 tablsp peanut oil

Cook the vermicelli noodles in a saucepan of boiling water for 3 minutes and then add the hokkien noodles to the saucepan and turn off the heat.

Use a fork to separate the noodles and then drain into a colander.

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat and then add the laksa paste and cook, stirring, until aromatic (around 3 minutes).

Add the coconut cream, chicken stock and lemon grass and stir to combine and bring to the boil, stirring constantly.

Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes or until well combined.

Add the fish, mussels and beans to the pan and cook, covered, for 5 minutes or until the mussels open. Discard any unopened mussels.

Divide the noodles and bean sprouts among serving bowls and ladle the hot laksa from the saucepan over the noodles.

Sprinkle with mint leaves and serve immediately with the lime wedges.

Warm Chilli Squid Salad with Lime Dressing

A great end-of-weekend dinner if you've been out in the boat and caught some squid. Good riesling a must with this.

makes 4 serves

Dressing

• 50g (1¾ oz) palm sugar
• 1 red cayenne chilli, de-seeded, thinly sliced
• 2 kaffir lime leaves, finely sliced
• 1 coriander root, finely chopped
• 1 stick lemongrass, bruised
• 1 tablsp fish sauce
• zest of 1 lime
• juice of 1 lime
• cup coconut vinegar (available from Asian grocers - or substitute rice wine vinegar)

Dressing

Place all dressing ingredients in a small saucepan and simmer over low heat for 15 minutes or until reduced by one-third.

Strain, cool and refrigerate until needed.

Chilli Squid

Combine cayenne and rice flour in a bowl, whisk egg whites and 1 tablsp cold water in another bowl until foamy.

Heat oil in a wok or deep-fryer until 180ºC (360ºF).

Working in batches, dust the squid rings and tentacles in flour mixture, shaking off excess, dip in egg white and deep-fry for 1-2 minutes or until crisp and golden.

Drain on absorbent paper.

Divide the lettuce amongst the plates, top with squid, lime segments and sliced chilli, drizzle with lime dressing and serve immediately.