Scampi alla Griglia

Eating Out - Italian Style

Our recipe this week is designed around Prosecco, simple and refreshing. So what better for a an early lunch or evening ‘al fresco’ dining experience, than ‘Scampi alla Griglia’ – ‘Grilled Prawns with Garlic Butter’.

This dish hails from the province of Veneto in the north east corner of Italy and the home of Prosecco and also famous for its abundance of fish and sea food, this is easy and delicious. Serve with a crisp salad or just a simple garnish of fresh rocket, but most importantly plenty of fresh rustic style bread. You can also have a dish of good Italian Extra Virgin Olive Oil to hand, perhaps with a splash of Balsamic Vinegar – the famous produce of Modena. I love the pattern it makes when added to the oil, great for dunking bread before the garlic butter and prawns, a bread dipping extravaganza.

Ingredients

Ingredients for 6:

Approx: 36 lge fresh [uncooked] tiger or Dublin bay prawns with shell on

 • 125gm or 4oz unsalted butter
 • 4 tbsp olive oil
 • 1 tbsp spoon of single cream [optional]
 • 4 plump cloves of garlic [Italian if poss], chopped then gently crushed
 • 4 med size shallots, finely chopped
 • Generous splash of Prosecco
 • Generous splash of brandy
 • Cup of chicken stock
 • I lemon cut into 6 wedges
 • Milled salt and pepper
 • 1 bay leaf
 • 6 fresh basil leaves
 • Chopped parsley for garnish
 • Optional – 1 Tin of quality Italian chopped tomatoes – see method!

[A finely chopped chilli can be added for extra bite for the more adventurous if desired, add with the shallots]

Method

 • Peel the prawns but keep the tail on [this is used for guests to pick out from the sauce]. De- vein down the back of the prawn with a small sharp knife and the wash thoroughly and pat dry with kitchen paper
 • Heat the olive oil in a large thick bottomed sautée or frying pan and add the shallots, simmer until soft, do not brown, then add the garlic until soft [Add chilli if required]
 • Splash in the Prosecco and reduce by ½
 • Add the bay leaf
 • Add in the Chicken stock and reduce by ½
 • Add the butter until melted in and then add the cream if desired, do not boil, just bring to gentle simmer
 • Season with salt/pepper to taste
 • Splash in the brandy and simmer for 3 minutes, remove
 • Place the prawns on a lge baking tray and place under a hot grill until turned pink, approximately 1 minute each side or less – or you could BBQ if you wish. Another way would be just to place the uncooked prawns in the sauce and turn over when pink – 2/3 minutes each side.
 • Gently re-heat sauce to simmer, do not boil – remove the bay leaf [If you wish to increase the sauce then add a tin of good quality Italian chopped tomatoes with pinch of sugar and some extra milled black pepper to taste]
 • Place the basil in a deep serving dish or 1 per individual dishes and cover with the sauce
 • Place prawns on top with the lemon for piquant flavour and sauce over, garnish with the chopped parsley
 • Make sure your guests have bibs or thick napkins with finger bowls of warm water near to hand

Serve the chilled Prosecco of your choice before, during and after. Ask your guests to bring a different one each to the party, so you can have a comparative tasting and if you really want to have more fun, wrap the bottles so your guests can’t see which one there are drinking and then try to guess or pick out the favourite, this is called ‘tasting blind’.

Serve the chilled Prosecco of your choice before, during and after. Ask your guests to bring a different one each to the party, so you can have a comparative tasting and if you really want to have more fun, wrap the bottles so your guests can’t see which one there are drinking and then try to guess or pick out the favourite, this is called ‘tasting blind’.