Published at 19:31, Thursday, 20 May 2010

THIS week we did another cookery demonstration for the brilliant food and company (foodandcompany.co.uk) who host demonstrations in a gorgeous converted building in the beautiful grounds of Mirehouse at Keswick.

Chances are that since you are reading this you have some sort of interest in food, so trust us when we say they are truly worth a visit.

Anyhow, as part of the demo we decided, for a bit of fun, to do a bit of a novelty dish by giving the retro prawn cocktail a bit of a makeover.

As it happened the dish was a winner, not just with the crowd but also with us.

If you’re anything like us, there is no way we would have ordered it in a restaurant (perhaps until now, as long as we know it’s well made) as we had been put off with poor manufactured bought-in sauces and cheap watery prawns.

There are a few guidelines to follow if you would like a spectacular makeover of an old favourite, but they are easily followed, there is no cooking involved (just mixing) and the resulting dish is fairly economical as far as prawns go.

Firstly we use North Atlantic shell on prawns (the small ones) which are available from Tesco at the fresh counter. Yes, they are a tad laborious as you have to peel them but the flavour is worth the effort.

They are much better than regular prawns and even have better flavour than the cooked tiger prawns that you can buy.

Beware not to eat them all as you are peeling them as it is very tempting!

To peel them simply pull off the head, peel and twist the shell from the main part of the body and then pop off the tail.

If you decide that this is too much work, you can substitute any other preferred prawn.

If you are using frozen prawns, always let them defrost naturally rather than running them under water (which will cause them to lose flavour) or in the microwave (which can make them go tough)

serves 4

1 x 350g pack north Atlantic shell on prawns, peeled

1 cos or romaine lettuce, shredded

a few handfuls of fresh rocket

1 avocado, peeled and chopped

For the Marie Rose sauce, mix together:

200g (roughly) of mayonnaise

3 tblsp tomato ketchup

a dash of Worcestershire sauce

a sprinkling of cayenne pepper or paprika

a splash of brandy

juice of half a lime

a small handful of finely chopped chives

lime wedges to serve

In a large bowl, mix together the prawns, lettuce, rocket and avocado. Dress this salad with the sauce (you might not need it all) and lightly mix together with your hands.

For a truly retro feel, divide the mixture and serve in four martini glasses. Otherwise serve in small glass or china bowls or just on plates. Garnish with the lime wedges.

Published by http://www.timesandstar.co.uk