Three-Way Prawns
The prawns are divided into head, body, and tail sections, each prepared using a different technique—braised, deep-fried, and pan-fried—then arranged together on a single plate.
Ingredients
Prawns (about 1000g, trimmed of tips and legs, deveined)
10
Yellow egg cake
10 g
Sesame oil
5 g
Egg yolks
4
Red chili skin
10 g
Ginger slices
5 g
Shaoxing wine
6 g
Sugar
50 g
Rehydrated shiitake mushrooms
10 g
Scallion-ginger juice
10 g
Dry flour
50 g
Fine salt
8 g
Rehydrated black moss
5 g
Egg whites
2
Wet starch
100 g
MSG
5 g
Cilantro leaves
5 g
Peanut oil
500 g
Stock
150 g
Rendered chicken fat
5 g
Scallion segments
5 g
Instructions
1
Step 1
Trim the prawns by removing the tips and legs, deveining them thoroughly, and rinsing well in clean water. Slice diagonally just behind the second segment from the head, then cut each prawn into two parts at the third segment from the tail. Peel the middle section and butterfly it about one-third of the way through along the back; place in a bowl with Shaoxing wine (2 g), fine salt (2 g), MSG (1 g), sesame oil (2 g), and scallion-ginger juice (5 g) to marinate briefly. For the tail section, peel the body but leave the tail fan intact, butterfly along the back into a hinge shape, lightly pat flat with the side of a knife, then score in a crosshatch pattern. Season with fine salt (2 g), MSG (1 g), Shaoxing wine (2 g), scallion-ginger juice (5 g), and sesame oil (3 g).
2
Step 2
Heat peanut oil (50 g) in a wok over medium heat to about 40% hot. Coat the skin side of the marinated prawn tails evenly with dry flour (10 g), then dip in egg yolks (2), and pan-fry until nearly done. Remove and drain off excess oil, then place skin-side down on a plate. Whip the egg whites into a stiff foam and fold in dry flour (10 g). Spread this mixture over the meat side of the tails. Use the red chili skin, black moss, shiitake mushrooms, tender cilantro leaves, and yellow egg cake to arrange colorful patterns, forming Hibiscus Prawn Fans.
3
Step 3
Heat peanut oil (25 g) in a wok over medium heat to about 60% hot. Add the scallion segments, ginger slices, and Sichuan peppercorns, stir-fry until fragrant, then remove and discard the aromatics. Add the sugar, stock (150 g), Shaoxing wine (2 g), fine salt (2 g), and MSG (1 g), and bring to a boil. Add the prawn heads and simmer over low heat until cooked through. Once the sauce has reduced and thickened, remove the heads and stand them upright in the center of the serving plate.
4
Step 4
Heat oil (425 g) in a wok over medium heat to about 80% hot. Dip the marinated prawn middles in a batter made from egg yolks (2), wet starch (50 g), and dry flour (20 g), then deep-fry until golden brown and cooked through. Remove and arrange the fried middles in a ring around the prawn heads.
5
Step 5
Steam the Hibiscus Prawn Fans until just cooked through, then remove and arrange on the outermost ring of the plate. In a wok, bring stock (100 g), fine salt (2 g), and MSG (2 g) to a boil, skim off any foam, then thicken with wet starch (150 g) into a glossy sauce. Stir in the rendered chicken fat and drizzle the sauce over the prawn fans to finish.
