RECIPE | Mexican-style prawn cocktail platter with Bloody Mary sauce

Thought prawn cocktails had vanished into the ether? Think again! By giving it a Mexican feel we’ve breathed fresh life into this retro classic

09 December 2020 - 09:40
By Pick n Pay Good Food Studio
Mexican-style prawn cocktail platter with Bloody Mary sauce.
Image: Christoph Hoffman Mexican-style prawn cocktail platter with Bloody Mary sauce.

Serves: 4

Bloody Mary sauce:

30ml (2 tbsp) vodka

10ml (2tsp) creamy horseradish sauce

30ml (2 tbsp) tomato sauce

60ml (4tbsp) quality mayonnaise

A dash of Tabasco sauce

A dash of Worcestershire sauce

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Prawn cocktail:

2 ripe avocados, stoned, peeled and sliced

Juice of 2 limes

2 gem lettuces, shredded

A large handful of radicchio lettuce, shredded

300g peeled and deveined prawns, cooked

Olive oil

2 cloves of garlic, finely sliced

6 large king prawns, deveined and shell on

A generous pinch of cayenne pepper

A generous pinch of Spanish smoked paprika

A drizzle of honey

A handful of baby watercress, snipped

3 limes, sliced

Method:

  1. In a small bowl, stir together ingredients for Bloody Mary sauce and season. Set aside.
  2. Place the avocado slices in a bowl and squeeze over the lime juice and season.
  3. Spread the lettuce and radicchio on a serving platter. Add the avocado slices and scatter over the cooked prawns.
  4. Add a good drizzle of olive oil to a non-stick frying pan over medium heat and fry the garlic for a minute before adding the king prawns. Sprinkle the prawns with cayenne pepper and smoked paprika and fry for 3 minutes per side until the prawns are pink and cooked through. Finish with a drizzle of honey, then remove from the heat. Cool.
  5. Add the king prawns to the platter and sprinkle with watercress and extra paprika and serve with slices of lime.