Burnt butter garlic prawns with cauliflower mash

Burnt butter garlic prawns recipe

Prawns are a delicious and versatile protein found in cuisines all over the world. They come in a huge variety of shapes, sizes, and colours, but all of them are easy to work with and quick to cook. Prawns are found in everything from pastas and curries to sandwiches, but one of the most popular ways they are enjoyed is with everyone’s favourite flavour hero: garlic.

This recipe for garlic prawns uses burnt butter to enhance the garlic flavour and give the prawns a silky texture perfect for spooning over low-carb cauliflower mash. With wilted spinach as the only other element of this dish, it’s super simple and makes a wonderful midweek meal that’s on the table in 25 minutes.

Here’s how to make garlic prawns with burnt butter

The cauliflower mash will take the most time, so let’s start there. Add your chopped cauliflower to a saucepan of boiling water and cook until tender (about 10 minutes). Drain well, then add 25 grams of butter to the saucepan. Use a fork or potato masher to break down the mixture until it is almost smooth. Cauliflower has a similarly creamy texture to potatoes when boiled this way. Season your cauliflower mash and taste as you go. Cover to keep warm.

Meanwhile, melt the remaining butter in a large frying pan over medium heat. A high quality butter is important for such a simple dish as each element serves to highlight the others. Generally, stick butter is more dense than tub butter, with 1 stick equal to half a cup respectively. You can use salted or unsalted butter for this recipe – the only difference will be how much additional seasoning is required later on. When the butter begins to foam (after 2 or 3 minutes), add the prawns and garlic. Cook for three minutes, stirring occasionally. After about 3 more minutes, the prawns should have changed colour and started to curl. Add the spinach to the frying pan and cook until wilted to your liking.

Divide the mashed cauliflower between plates and top with the garlic prawn and spinach mixture. Drizzle over some of that delicious buttery sauce, season with salt and pepper if desired, and fresh parsley if available. Eat while hot and enjoy your delicious homemade garlic prawns with burnt butter.

Plenty more prawns in the sea

Garlic and prawns are an iconic land-and-sea pairing. Mastering one basic element like garlic prawns opens up a whole menu of options. You could make a garlic prawn pizza, or a garlic prawn sauce that can be put on steak or chicken. You could also dress them up on the barbecue like these prawns with lemon and caper dressing, or add them into a stir fry like this peanut stir fry with vermicelli noodles, or into a curry like these curried prawns with snow peas and Thai basil.

If you want creamy garlic prawns, try adding thickened cream, sour cream, or even cream cheese to the pan. For an Italian spin, try white wine and garlic prawns in a sauce together, or try creamy garlic prawns with rice for an Asian-inspired meal. This creamy garlic prawns recipe with fettuccine and spring onions is another midweek dinner option that’s done in 25 minutes. More great pasta and prawn pairings are this tomato farfalle with chilli flakes, which uses banana prawns, and Michael Weldon’s fiery prawn pasta with garlic and two kinds of chilli.

Now get cooking

Garlic prawn recipes can be creamy, spicy, buttery, and everything in between. If you love the prawn and pasta combination, check out the garlic prawn and asparagus tagliatelle, this chilli prawn and fresh tomato pappardelle, or this fresh and creamy prawn and fennel pasta. For some warming and hearty dishes, have a go of Curtis Stone's banana prawn risotto or his easy prawn curry.