I don't care what ya'll bullies on twitter think, I loved 'Simply Nigella' and it's diverse recipes. It was great that Nigella was exploring new fields of cookery and healthier recipes. Yeh, she missed the mark a few times and altogether it probably wasn't as good as 'Nigella Express' or 'Nigella Kitchen' but as always there were some stand out winners, henceforth these cinnamon prawns.
This recipe is adapted from her Thai prawns from episode 1, where Nigella received the greatest backlash for her avocado toast recipe. It was utterly fabulous, and I decided to add a bit more veg, a bit more richness and texture from cashew nuts and didn't use as many weird ingredients like whatever the hell soy ketchup is to add my own touch. It was delicious- warming but fresh, sweet but super savoury and just so good. Definitely making again and you should too!
1)In a large wok, heat a little oil and add some green beans, thinly slivered baby corn (cut it with the knife parallel to the corn, so you get long strips not small chunks). Cook for a minute or so, flipping regularly. Add some strips of celery chopped the same, but use the paler, sweeter shoots in the centre of the plant because they are most similar to the original Chinese celery. Cook for another minute. You could use a large frying pan for this, but I dug out my big wok which I don't use often and quickly learned it should be used a lot more- it somehow cooks everything evenly at such a high temperature, and it remains very steady. After the vegetables have gone limp, add a handful of cashew nuts.
2)Add a star anise and two cinnamon sticks to the pan, and toss them around well to start releasing their flavour. Add about 2 tablespoons of dark soy sauce, about 1 of rich oyster sauce, some ground black pepper, a teaspoon of ground cinnamon, about a cm of freshly grated ginger and about 100 ml of water and a chicken stock pot. Let it bubble a little and then add some raw King prawns. Cook for only about 2 minutes, when they curl well.
3)Now add one of my favourite ingredients, some rice Vermicelli or beanthreads soaked in boiling water until soft and drained. Toss them well into the liquid and try to thread the vegetables through the noodles. To serve, chop some more celery leaves over it and eat the Thai way, with a fork to pick up noodles and other paraphernalia and a spoon to shovel it down the hatch.
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