Roberta Muir

Preparing Green (Raw) Prawns

Appears in
Sydney Seafood School Cookbook
Sydney Seafood School Cookbook

By Roberta Muir

Published 2012

  • About
  1. Holding the prawn on its back and breaking from the underside, gently break the head away from the body.

     

  2. Hold the prawn straight and gently pull the head away from the body; the digestive tract will usually come out in one go, attached to the head.

     

  3. If the digestive tract breaks off, grasp it and, holding the prawn straight, gently pull it out or use a thin wooden skewer or toothpick to hook it out from the back of the prawn. Alternatively, make a small incision along the back of the prawn to remove the tract.

     

  4. Break off the legs until you reach the tail, then peel off the shell; if keeping the tail fin on, leave the last section of shell on to hold fin in place.

     

  5. To butterfly a prawn, lay it on its side and slice two-thirds of the way along the back of the prawn. Wipe away any digestive tract.

     

  6. Lay the prawn on a chopping board, cut-side down, and press gently with the heel of your hand to flatten it out.