Brochette of prawns recipe

Bruce Poole
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Things on skewers always lend themselves to being cooked over a barbecue. In fact, realistically at home one can’t cook them anywhere else without making a right old mess. These brochettes can also be made up well in advance and are very easy to grill once the barbie is up and running.

Bruces's tips:

It is important to use small or baby squid for this. Larger squid are usually cut into rings and this shape won’t really work on a brochette. As for the prawns, make sure that they are the raw variety (as opposed to cooked ones sold on deli counters) and are thoroughly defrosted, if frozen, before cooking. Good fishmongers usually sell the large Saudi prawns, which are perfect for this. A mandolin is useful here for slicing the courgettes, and obviously you will require some disposable wooden or bamboo skewers.And some sunshine.

Ingredients

2 Large courgettes, topped and tailed
1 pinch Salt
8 Fresh baby squid, each one no longer than 10cm, cleaned by the fishmonger
12 Large, raw, preferably Saudi, prawns, thawed
1 Lemon

For the sauce vierge

6 Large ripe plum tomatoes, blanched and skinned
2 Large shallots, peeled and finely chopped
1 Clove of garlic, peeled and minced
1 pinch Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp Your best olive oil
1 Small bunch of fresh basil, leaves picked and torn

Details

Cuisine: Mediterranean
Recipe Type: Main
Difficulty: Easy
Preparation Time: 10 mins
Cooking Time: 5 mins
Serves: 4

Step-by-step

Light the barbecue. Slice the courgettes lengthways on a mandolin into thin, 2mm-thick slices. Sprinkle with salt and leave to disgorge in a colander for half an hour or so.
To make the sauce vierge, separate the tomato flesh from the seeds and pulp and discard the latter. Cut the flesh into neat 1cm dice and combine with the shallots in a mixing bowl. Add the garlic and season with salt and pepper.
Leave for 15 minutes to encourage the salt to get to work with the toms. Add a good slug of olive oil and the torn basil. Adjust the seasoning and reserve at room temperature.
Dry the courgettes on absorbent kitchen paper and roll them up into tight coils. Fold each squid in half. Thread the folded squid, the courgette coils and the prawns on to the skewers evenly. Don't worry unduly if there is an uneven number of courgettes.
Season the brochettes with salt and pepper just prior to grilling. Place them without any oil on to the barbecue and cook until pleasantly charred all over - about 5 minutes in total. Transfer to a plate and sprinkle with olive oil and lemon juice. Serve with the sauce vierge and perhaps some couscous, or a cold rice or pasta salad.