Fried Prawn Balls 百花釀蝦球
I used ready-made shrimp paste that I bought in the seafood section of an Asian grocery store. You can also use dace paste or any other fish paste for this recipe.You can also use crab claws or a sturdy fish fillet like cod or basa.To make the sweet and sour dipping sauce, simply combine 2 tbsp of ketchup, 2 tbsp of rice vinegar, 1 tbsp sugar and 1 tbsp water. Heat in a pan until the sugar dissolves.Thai chili sauce also works well as a sauce for this dish.
Approximate cost (CAD) $18
Ingredients
- 350 g Tiger prawns headless (approx. 20 prawns)
- 300 g Shrimp paste
- 1 Egg
- 1 cup Panko
- 2 tsp Cornstarch
- 600 ml Oil
Instructions
- Remove the shell of the prawns, leaving only the tail shell intact
- Rinse the prawns
- Butterfly the prawns by making a cut from the back without cutting through to the front
- Devein and open the prawns onto a flat surface. Repeat steps 3 and 4 for all the prawns
- Prepare 2 tsp cornstarch in a small bowl
- Beat an egg in a bowl
- Prepare 1 cup of panko in a medium size mixing bowl
- Have your shrimp paste ready for use
- Take one prawn and use your finger to rub some cornstarch over the side facing up
- Use a small spoon to spread shrimp paste onto the prawn. Use your finger or spoon to pat and shape in onto the prawn.
- Repeat steps 9 and 10 for all the prawns
- Dip the stuffed prawn into the egg by hold the tail. Try not to get egg on the tail
- Put the egg dipped prawn into the panko. Use a spoon to spoon the panko on the whole surface of the prawn except for the tail
- Leave the prawn in the panko until you’re ready to deep-fry. Repeat for all the prawns
- Heat 600 ml oil to 150˚C or 300˚F The amount of oil depends on the size of your pot. If you have a smaller pot, then you won’t need as much oil but you may have to fry the prawns in separate batches
- Put the prawns into the oil. Do not overcrowd the pot.
By doing so, you will not get the golden color in 3 minutes. Cooking it for longer may lead to over-cooking the prawns 
- Fry for approx. 3 minutes until golden brown. Remove from oil and let it rest on a cooling rack
- Continue frying until all the prawns are fried
If you were frying them in batches, after the last batch, you can put the oil up to 175˚C or 350˚F and fry the prawns again to heat them up for 1 minute. This time, you can put more into the pot since they were warm already. This will ensure that all the prawns are nice and hot when you serve them - Place on serving plate. This dish can be served with sweet and sour sauce, Thai chili sauce or Chinese red vinegar
- Serve