Words and Images by: LYNN BAIN and ELLEN DEWAR

Mexican Prawn Wraps

MEXICAN PRAWN WRAPS

These prawn wraps are made with tortillas that are folded over the combined prawn and cheese filling and then baked in the oven for a snack of crispy golden deliciousness. Serve with a little salsa and a dollop of sour cream.

PREPARATION TIME: 10 minutes

COOKING TIME: 10-15 minutes

SERVES: 4

INGREDIENTS

• 3 tbsp cooking oil 
• 3 cups finely grated cheese 
• 2-3 tbsp roughly chopped coriander leaves 
• 3 green shallots, finely sliced (keep white and green parts separated in bowls) 
• 2 cloves garlic, finely grated 
• 1 small red chilli, de-seeded and then very finely chopped 
• 3 tbsp tequila (optional) 
• 750g green prawns, peeled, de-veined, and sliced in half lengthways 
• Freshly ground salt and pepper 
• Juice of half a lime 
• 4 large tortillas

METHOD

Preheat your oven to 200C/400F. Place an oven rack into the central position.

Line a baking tray with foil and then brush the foil with 1 tbsp of the cooking oil. You may need a few baking sheets.

In a bowl, mix together the grated cheese, roughly chopped coriander leaves, and the sliced greener parts of the green shallots. Place the bowl to one side.

Now blot the prawns dry with some paper towel and then sprinkle them with a little salt and pepper. Heat 1 tbsp of cooking oil over a medium heat in a heavy based frypan. Saute the sliced white parts of the green shallots, garlic, and chilli for a couple of minutes until softened.

Add the tequila to the shallot/garlic/ chilli mixture and continue to cook until the tequila has evaporated. Now add the prawns to the pan and cook for a few minutes until the prawns are pink and cooked through.

Transfer the contents of the pan to a bowl and stir in the lime juice. Drain the bowl’s contents through a sieve to remove any liquid and prevent a soggy wrap.

Lay the tortillas out on a clean work surface. Sprinkle half of the cheese mixture over half of each tortilla, leaving a clean border around the outer edge of the tortilla. Now lay a quarter of the prawn mixture over the top of the cheese on each tortilla. Sprinkle some of the remaining cheese mixture over the top of the prawns.

Fold the tortilla in half over the top of the prawns and cheese; the tortilla should be a semi-circle in shape. Carefully place the once-folded wrap onto the oiled foillined baking tray. Brush the upper surface of the wrap with the remaining cooking oil.

Place the tray of prepared wraps into the oven and cook for approximately five to 10 minutes or until they start to brown (keep an eye on the cheese as it melts – cook it the way that you like it). Then remove the tray of wraps from the oven and allow them to cool for a few minutes on a wire rack.

Serve with salsa or sour cream (or both).

HANDY HINT

• You may substitute pieces of fish, or other seafood, for the prawns in this recipe.

MILD-MANNERED MEAT WRAPS

PREPARATION TIME: 10 minutes

COOKING TIME: 20 minutes

SERVES: 4

INGREDIENTS (MEAT FILLING)

• 500g mince 
• 1 tbsp cooking oil 
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin 
• Good pinch of dried chilli flakes 
• 1 onion, finely chopped 
• 1 clove garlic, peeled and thinly sliced 
• 4 tbsp tomato (or tomato salsa) 
• Wraps or tortilla (or pita pocket bread)

INGREDIENTS (EXTRAS)

You can add some or all of the following to your wrap:

• 1 carrot, grated 
• 200g grated cheese 
• Capsicum strips 
• Tomatoes (chopped) 
• Lettuce leaves (shredded) 
• Guacamole 
• Sour cream

METHOD

To cook the filling, place the mince, oil, cumin, and dried chilli flakes into a bowl and mix together well.

Heat a large frypan over a medium heat. I’ve always been a fan of using a cast iron skillet as the heavy base retains heat and once seasoned the skillet is a joy to cook meat in.

Add the chopped onion and garlic to the pan and cook until the onion has softened. Then add the mince mixture to the softened onion in the pan and begin to brown the mince, breaking up any lumps with either a fork or a wooden spoon.

Now add the tomato (or salsa) to the mince mixture in the pan and stir. Continue to cook until the mince is nicely browned and cooked through. Then remove the frypan from the heat.

Heat a clean frypan/skillet (or barbecue plate) and gently cook your unfilled wraps (or tortilla) on each side, over a low heat, until they are warm. This brings out extra flavours in the wraps and makes it easier to wrap the tortilla around your fillings. Note that some wraps will split/crack if you don’t warm them through, especially some tortillas.

Spread a large spoonful of the mince and salsa mixture onto a wrap; then add your choice of some grated carrot, grated cheese, capsicum strips, lettuce, and/or tomato pieces. You can add an extra dollop of salsa to the filling in your wrap, or add some guacamole or sour cream (or both).

One way to secure your wrap is to fold the bottom of the wrap up over the mince, and then roll it up tightly sideways, starting from one side. Once it is rolled, you can get stuck into eating your wrap; eat it from the exposed end first.

As one of the many options, you could also use pita bread instead of a wrap. Spoon some of the mince mixture into the pita bread’s pocket before you add your choice of carrot, cheese, etc.

HANDY HINTS

• You could use any type of mince that you prefer in these wraps – either turkey, chicken, beef, lamb, or pork. 
• I find that a clean pair of hands is the best tool for mixing together the mince, oil, cumin, and chilli flakes.

Category: Cooking
Written: Thu 01 Feb 2018
Printed: February, 2018
Published By: