COMFORT FOOD: SPANISH-STYLE PRAWNS

I like to think of this Spanish-style dish as an ode to hot and sticky summer days. It’s the kind you eat carelessly with your hands, slurping the prawn head juice, mopping up the tomato sauce with a roughly broken piece of bread, licking all your fingers with satisfied abandon and washing it all down with a bubbly beverage. Listen to my Wanderlust playlist while making this, because yes, you must romance yourself.

DIFFICULTY: Easy

SERVES: 2

PREP TIME: 20 minutes

COOK TIME: 45 minutes

1 small carrot, chopped

2 shallots, sliced

3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped

1 celery stalk, chopped

2 red chillies

A handful of cherry or rosa tomatoes

1 cup of passata or tomato puree

Capers

A bunch of fresh thyme, chopped

A bunch of fresh Italian parsley, chopped

Olive oil

Salt

Pepper

1 teaspoon paprika

8 prawns, large* (do not shell)

1 lemon for serving

* To increase the portion, use slightly smaller unpeeled prawns and reduce cooking time.

1. Heat olive oil in a pot. Once sizzling, add shallots, garlic, celery, carrots and chillies. Reduce heat and cook until soft.
2. Add tomatoes, passata, herbs and capers to the pot. Season with salt, pepper and paprika. Add a cup of water to get the sauce to a soupy consistency, stir and taste. Season again if needed.
3. Cover the pot and let it simmer gently for 30 minutes.
4. Add prawns to the pot along with an extra grind of salt. Make sure each prawn is covered in the sauce. Cook for eight to 10 minutes – no more, no less. You don’t want mushy prawns.
5. Remove from heat and squeeze half a lemon’s juice. Stir. And that’s it.