How to cook perfect mazzancolle |
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How to cook perfect “mazzancolle” - used in the recipe Tiger prawns cooked in sea salt
The time for cooking the “mazzancolle” is 8-10 minutes at 200 °C (gas mark 6) but this is not always correct because many factors may affect the cooking process. If you have not pre-heated the oven properly, for example, you risk to increase the cooking time, resulting in chewy prawn meat. If you do not have a fan assisted oven, that distributes the heat uniformly inside the oven, the top part of the oven is always hotter than the bottom, so watch where you put your flan dish. Last but not least, “mazzancolle” come with many different scientific names (Penaeus Monodon, Penaeus Vannamei, Penaeues Kerathurus, Penaeus Durarum etc.) and what we have in Italy is probably slightly different from what we get in the UK. I normally use the black tiger prawns, that belong to the family of the “mazzancolle”, but also need a bit of extra time for cooking (sometimes 11 - 12 minutes). Instead of sticking to the cooking times indicated, I suggest the following advice: the black tiger prawn, when cooked, turns to a pink-red colour so, after 10 minutes move one prawn and check the colour of the body. If the body still has some grey parts, this means it needs extra cooking time. Another way is to watch the tiger prawn heads; when their heads start to turn a slightly burnt colour, this means that they are cooked. Another way is the smell; suddenly you will notice a lovely smell spreading in your kitchen so, when this happens, take them out of the oven quickly. If you are not sure, try with a couple of tiger prawns before putting the others in the oven. Like the recipes? Bookmark us!          |
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| Last Updated ( Monday, 30 July 2007 ) |
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