Citrus Prawn Ceviche Tostadas with Charred Sweetcorn and mashed avocado

Recipe courtesy of Psychologies Magazine (October 2018) and taken from “Salad Feasts: How to assemble the perfect meal” by Jessica Elliott Dennison.

Serves : 4

Preparation time : 35 mins

Ingredients :
8 small shop-bought corn tortillas
1 tblsp vegetable oil
60g tinned sweetcorn in water (drained weight)
250g peeled raw king prawns
Juice of 3 limes
2 baby shallots or 1 banana shallot, peeled
3/4 tsp chilli flakes
1 grapefruit
4 radishes, finely sliced
2 avocados, halved and stones removed

Step One : First, preheat the oven to 180oC / Gas Mark 4. Divide the tortillas between a few baking trays, brush with the oil, then bake for 5-8 minutes, or until golden and crisp. Set aside to cool.

Step Two : Meanwhile, heat a medium frying pan, until smoking. Rinse the sweetcorn, drain completely, then add to the pan (you don’t need any oil). Cook for 3-5 minutes or until nicely charred with little black marks. Transfer to a place to cool.

Step Three : Next, if not already deveined, make a small incision along the back of the prawns and remove the dark black line (the digestive tract). Place the prawns in a medium dish or bowl, then squeeze in the limes. Slice the shallots into rounds as finely as you can and add to the bowl along with the chilli flakes. Leave for 7 minutes, then turn the prawns over and leave for another 7 minutes. By this point, they should be pink and ‘cooked’.

Step Four : Next, cut away the top and bottom of the grapefruit, then carefully slice away the peel and white pith. Slice out each segment, then finely chop the flesh (discard the membranes). Add to the prawns along with any grapefruit juice. Gently stir in the radishes.

Step Five : Scoop out the avocado flesh and roughly mash with a fork.

Step Six : Take the crispy tortillas, ceviche mixture charred sweetcorn and mashed avocado to the table in attractive serving dishes. Allow everyone to build their own tostadas.

Step Seven : You can also shallow fry the tortillas in a pan of hot vegetable oil until golden. Be sure to drain on kitchen paper, seasoned with salt.

Prawn and Squid Provencale

A French recipe

Serves: 4; Prep: 30 mins; Cook: 15 mins; Cals: 326

Fresh prawns and squid in a tomato sauce, this dish can be served hot or cold.

Ingredients: 6 tbsp/90ml olive oil; 3 shallots, finely diced; 3 cloves of garlic, finely diced; 3 stalks thyme; zest of 1/2 lemon, finely grated; 1/2 pt/300ml Muscadet; 1 lb/450g tomatoes, peeled, seeded and cut into 1/2in/1cm cubes; 8oz/225g prawns or mussels; 8oz/225g squid, cleaned and cut into rings; salt and freshly ground black pepper; 2 tbsp/30ml chopped fresh parsley; 4 black olives, stoned and cut into thin strips; 4 green olives, stoned and cut into thin strips

Heat 3 tbsp/45ml of the olive oil in a non-stick pan and gently sauté the shallots, garlic, thyme and lemon zest until the shallots are soft and golden. Add the Muscadet and reduce by two thirds. Remove the thyme and leave to cool.
When the shallot mixture has cooked, add the tomatoes and the prawns or mussels.
Dry the squid on kitchen paper and season well. Heat the remaining olive oil in a non-stock frying pan and stir fry the squid in batches for a couple of seconds until white and firm. Return all the squid and the tomatoes to the pan. Mix thoroughly, then heat through if serving hot, or chill if serving cold. Stir in the parsley and olives and garnish with extra parsley before serving.

Lightning Prawn Salad

You could add quartered hard-boiled eggs for a more substantial meal.

Serves: 4 Prep Time: 10 mins; Cook Time: Nil

Ingredients: 12 cooked new potatoes; 4 tomatoes, roughly chopped; 1 seeded red pepper, in strips; 6 spring onions cut into lengths on the slant; 225g (8oz) best peeled prawns; strips of zest of an orange

For the dressing: 4 tblsp sunflower oil; 1 tblsp white wine vinegar; 1 tsp Dijon mustard; juice of ½ an orange; salt and ground black pepper; 1 tblsp flat parsley, chopped

Chunk cooked potatoes and place in a bowl with tomatoes, pepper, spring onions, prawns and orange zest. Shake dressing ingredients in a screw top jar and pour over salad. Toss to mix and coat. Serve immediately.