Sesame Prawn Toasts

This used to be such a popular dish in the 80’s but I know that Kylie Kwong did have this recipe in one of her books or shows. I don’t know why people stop making them here. It’s actually a great appetiser that stretches the use of shrimps / prawns. And it’s also another idea to use up stale bread although that’s not a precedent.

I managed to get my hands on some good sized shrimps at an offer in Jusco. It’s very rare for seafood to be on price offer but seeing that these were rather affordable, I quickly bought two batches. The first batch I attempted to make a Vietnamese dish with mangoes but it didn’t turn out quite as I had hoped, the second batch was for these toasts. I’m all for fresh and DIY prep but I do wish sometimes that there is some gadget that could shell prawns and de-vein them for me. What a tedious task.

But no complaints when it comes to eating, in fact they were really delicious with a cup of hot, steaming Chinese tea. The dipping sauce is optional. Even Japanese mayo would go well with these morsels.

SESAME PRAWN TOAST RECIPE

Ingredients;

200 gms of prawns, shelled and de-veined
Spring onions, chopped
1 egg
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon fish sauce
3 teaspoons light soy sauce
3 big tablespoons of cornstarch
White pepper
White sesame seeds
Black sesame seeds (optional)
White bread, crust removed & sliced into small triangles or rectangles
Oil for frying

Steps;

1. In a food processor, placed your prawns, spring onions, egg, sesame oil, fish sauce, light soy sauce, cornstarch and white pepper.
2. Process until you have a rather gluey texture.
3. Spread the mixture onto the bread slices. I mixed my white and black sesame seeds together and put them in an old spice jar with a sprinkling top. Sprinkle your sesame seeds all over the prawn paste bread.
4. Heat oil till frying temp. Fry each toast paste side down first and then turn it around to fry the other side. Do in batches. Don’t take your eyes of the toasts when frying. Drain on a rack to get rid of excess oil.
5. Eat while it’s still warm with chilli sauce.

Enjoy!