Pepper Garlic Prawns Recipe

I love easy-to-make foods, made with simple ingredients, yet tasty to eat. Talking about easy but delicious food, here comes my favorite of all proteins ‘Prawn’ or you can say ‘Shrimp’. Today I am gonna share the easy method of making Pepper Garlic Prawns recipe. ❤️

Imagine your guests are, on time and you have just finished the main course. What are you gonna do about the starter?

If your guests are comfortable with Lil bit of heat and do like Asian cuisine flavors try to make this amazing recipe Pepper Garlic Prawns. It will take you just a few minutes to prepare this dish and your guests are going to love it. After all, who doesn’t like a tasty prawn starter? 🙂

Asian cuisine is one of my favorite cuisines because it has bold flavors and goes perfectly with almost any kind of protein.

Prawns or Shrimps whatever you say, Are very handy to find. Besides garlic and pepper are stapled ingredients in any kitchen.

Just get some sauces (Soya sauce, Tomato sauce, and Fish sauce) from the superstore and you are all set to start cooking this dish.

How this dish(Pepper Garlic Prawns) tastes like?

As we all know, Asian people usually love spicy foods. Also, they generously use chilies and peppers in most of the dishes. Though here in this recipe, you will get a nice balance of taste and clean flavors to enjoy.

Prawns are tasty food whichever way they are cooked. So the star of this recipe is, of course, Prawn/Shrimps no doubt. Plus the balance of other ingredients with the taste of prawn is amazing.

You will definitely feel the heat from pepper but slight sweetness and sourness from the tomato sauce at the same time. Also, you are going to feel a strong garlic flavor from your taste palette.

Garnishing ingredients (Spring onions/Coriander leaves, sesame seeds) will add freshness and texture to your mouth and will clean your palette for the next dishes.

Prawn or Shrimp what should you choose?🤔

In terms of size, Prawns are bigger than shrimps and are mainly freshwater creatures. Also, their body is almost straight.

On the other hand, Shrimp can be found both in salted and fresh water and they have curled bodies.

Though shrimps and prawns have lots of noticeable differences in their outer form, they taste almost the same.

Most restaurants and chefs use these two proteins interchangeably while making any dish or writing the dish name on the menu card.

So Prawn or Shrimp whatever you may choose, you are going to get almost the same texture and flavors. But if you ask for my preference, please choose freshwater shrimps in available large sizes.

I really enjoy using them while making Asian cuisine. Try to get fresh protein, because frozen ones just don’t taste as good as fresh ones. 🤗

What sauces can you use for the Pepper Garlic Prawns recipe?

Soya sauce: Soya sauce is an essential ingredient in any Asian kitchen. This sauce is made from a fermented paste of soybeans, roasted grains, brine, and Aspergillus sojae molds.

The taste of soy sauce is predominated by saltiness, followed by moderate umami, a sweet taste. Also, slight bitterness can be felt while raw soya sauce is tasted.

You definitely have to use soya sauce in this recipe. As this is Asian cuisine and we are not using any extra salt, to give this dish an Asian touch and authentic taste, using soya sauce is a must.

Tomato sauce: We all more or less know the taste of tomato sauce. One of my go-to ingredients while making Italian dishes.

Though we are dealing with Asian cuisine, using tomato sauce is highly recommended. We can’t imagine Chinese foods without tomato sauce.

Actually, the tanginess and sweetness of this dish come from tomato sauce. You can use store-bought ones or homemade fresh ones too.

Tomato ketchup also can be used as a replacement for tomato sauce. Also if you don’t like too much sauce, you can adjust the measurement of tomato sauce I have used in this recipe.

Fish sauce: Fish sauce is a staple seasoning in East Asian and Southeast Asian Cuisine. It is made from fish or krill that have been coated in salt and fermented for up to two years.

It can add a savory umami flavor to your dishes. That’s why this dish demands this amazing ingredient. But as we are using soya sauce, if you don’t have this sauce in hand, you can skip using it.

Though adding a little bit of fish sauce to this dish, is my personal preference.

What can be served along with the Pepper Garlic Prawns recipe?

Plain aromatic rice just goes perfectly with this dish. We Asians usually like to serve this way, but to make things fancier you can serve Chinese fried rice side by side. Together they taste heavenly.

This dish also can be served with traditional Bengali Pulao/Polao (aromatic rice cooked in clarified butter, milk, resins, whole spices, and dry fruits), Roti, or flour bread.

Even you can enjoy this dish with sauteed spaghetti or even with freshly boiled pasta.

Also serve a bowl of cold salad and a bottle of wine, Voila! Your table is all set for your guests.

Is it a ‘Main Course’ dish or ‘Starter’?

Pepper Garlic Prawns is a versatile recipe. You can use the dish either as a starter or as a main course, completely depends on you.

If you want to serve it as a starter, keep the gravy Lil dry.

If you want to serve this recipe as the main course, just follow the tutorial and keep the gravy/sauce in Lil runny or liquid consistency.

Equipment used for the Pepper Garlic Prawns:

• Frying Pan
• Curry pot
• Spatula
• Black pepper crusher
• Oil dispenser
• Shrimp deveiner machine

Ingredients used for the Pepper Garlic Prawns:

I measured the ingredients based on 4 people’s servings. You can adjust depending on your need.

Shrimp/Prawn marination:

• Prawns/Shrimps 500-700 gm
• Black pepper powder 1 tsp
• Salt 1 tsp

Sauce/Gravy:

• Olive oil 2-3 tsp
• Garlic (finely chopped) ½ tbsp
• Chili flex 1 tsp
• Black pepper powder 1 tsp
• Soya sauce 1 tbsp
• Tomato sauce ⅓ cup
• Fish sauce 2 tsp
• Sugar or as per your taste 1 tsp

Finishing touch/Garnishing:

• Coriander leaves or Spring onions (finely chopped)
• Sesame seeds

How to cook Pepper Garlic Prawns

First, Marinate prawns/shrimps with salt and pepper.

Then sprinkle some olive oil into a pan and add prawns/shrimps.

Sear both sides. Bring a pinkish golden color. Try to avoid overcooking them. Otherwise, you will get a rubbery texture.

Note:

• No need to hold marination of prawns/shrimps for a long period. Even when you are in hurry, just add salt and pepper instantly before searing.

• Cook each side of prawns/shrimps for a few seconds to 1 minute. Don’t overcook.

To make gravy or sauce, add olive oil to the same pan we have used to sear prawns.

Then add finely chopped garlic and chili flex to the oil. Fry a bit.

Add soya sauce and some water to avoid burning ingredients.

Now add tomato sauce and give a good mix.

This is time to mix the fish sauce with the gravy. Again mix everything well.

Mix some sugar and black pepper in this gravy to boost flavors. Now stir stir stir.

Note:

• No need to add extra salt. Please check the gravy before adding any further salt. Soya sauce, tomato sauce, and fish sauce contain salt. Salt has also been added to the marination.

• Please do searing of prawns and make gravy in the same pan to enhance flavors.

Finally, add seared prawns/shrimps. Mix everything together.

Slow down your stove heat and put a lid on. Let it cook for a good 3 to 5 minutes, or until you are satisfied with the consistency of the gravy.

Turn off the heat and serve warm. Add some finely chopped coriander leaves or spring onions on top.

Also, you can sprinkle sesame seeds to add extra texture to the dish.

More Recipes to Try:

• Creamy Lemon Chicken Recipe
• Thai Soup Recipe (with Chicken, Prawns, and Mushrooms)
• Dal Khichdi Recipe (Hotchpotch)
• Bulletproof Coffee Recipe
• Old Fashioned Pancake Recipe
• Lulu Cake Recipe
• Masala Chai Recipe (Spiced Milk Tea)
• Mango Smoothie Bowl Recipe
• Homemade Dumplings Recipe

Your dish is now ready to serve. Enjoy with your friends and family. ❤️ 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦