Cereal Butter Prawns (I)
Melt some butter and, when it’s bubbling nicely, grab a few sprigs of curry leaves and rip off the leaves (with style, of course). Toss ’em in the wok, together with a roughly chopped up cili padi. Stir vigorously, knocking the spatula against the wok now and then. (Not sure what the knocking is for but that’s what chefs do. Maybe it’s a man thing?)
Butter, curry leaves and cili padi are all ingredients with pretty strong flavours but they complement rather than overwhelm each other. Each stands its ground, yet works with the other two to create a killer combination loved by young and old alike.
The party of three is excellent as it is but why stop there? When the aroma of the curry leaves starts drifting round the kitchen, tip a good half cup of cereal into the sizzling butter (with a flourish please). A few more vigorous stirs and – voila! – there’s a pile of golden sand in the wok. I know many people would happily eat this crunchy sandy mixture with a shovel! It’s so good it makes even cardboard taste good. (Not that I’ve tried, of course. I’ll stick to prawns fried in the shell, thank you very much.)
I’d always thought cereal prawns were made with oatmeal, so my first stab at the recipe was with some Quaker instant oats that had been sitting in a kitchen cabinet, unloved and untouched. When the oats were mixed with melted butter, all I got was a disgusting, soggy lump that tasted downright nasty. Into the bin it went, no hesitation at all, and the prawns were eaten sans cereal.
Note to self: (1) “麦片” means cereal flakes; that’s why “麦片虾” in English is cereal prawns; (2) oatmeal is commonly referred to as “麦片” (which isn’t wrong since oat is a cereal) but, strictly speaking, it should be “燕麦片”; and (3) I need to improve my Chinese!
The second time round, after a bit of research, I bought a pack of Nestum All Family Cereal. This one, recommended by many cooks, worked like a charm. It was super fragrant and super crispy – a total success! There were smiling faces, finger licking, and nods of approval all round. YAY!
Did you know that Nestum cereal, made by Nestlé, is 67% wheat flour? The rest of the ingredients are rice flour, sugar, corn and various vitamins. So everyone who eats Nestum cereal, thinking it’s good for his health because that’s what the ads say, is actually eating enriched, baked flour. Except it’s sold at almost four times the price of regular raw flour. Nestlé is really smart, eh? No wonder it’s the biggest food company in the world.
Cereal Butter Prawns
Video
Ingredients
- ¾ cup Nestum cereal original flavour
- ½ tsp salt
- 1½ tsp sugar
- 1½ tbsp milk powder
- 8 medium size prawns 300 g – trim, devein, wash, dry thoroughly
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ egg beaten
- 1½ tbsp plain flour
- corn oil for deep-frying
- 30 g unsalted butter
- 6-10 sprigs curry leaves rinse, dry with paper towels, discard stalks
- 1 bird’s eye chilli thinly sliced
Instructions
- Thoroughly stir cereal, salt, sugar and milk powder. Set aside.¾ cup Nestum cereal, ½ tsp salt, 1½ tsp sugar, 1½ tbsp milk powder
- Sprinkle prawns with salt. Add egg and mix thoroughly. Sprinkle with flour and mix till coated. Deep-fry in just smoking oil over maximum heat possible till just cooked. Drain.8 medium size prawns, 1 tsp salt, ½ egg, 1½ tbsp plain flour, corn oil for deep-frying
- Heat butter till bubbling and lightly brown. Add curry leaves and chilli. Fry over medium heat till fragrant.30 g unsalted butter, 1 bird’s eye chilli, 6-10 sprigs curry leaves
- Reduce heat to low. Add cereal mix. Stir till lightly golden. Curry leaves should crisp up as excess moisture is absorbed by cereal.
- Add prawns and toss till well mixed, turning off heat as cereal turns fully golden brown. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Plate and serve.
