Crispy Prawn Burgers (Shrimp)
Recipe video above.
Servings: 4
Calories: 675cal
Ingredients
Prawn patties
- 400g / 14oz fresh OR 500g/1lb frozen raw peeled prawns (shrimp) (Note 1)
- 1 garlic , minced
- 1/4 cup green onion , finely sliced
- 1/2 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
Crumbing:
- 1 egg , lightly whisked with a fork
- 1/2 cup plain flour (all-purpose flour)
- 1 1/4 cups panko breadcrumbs
- 1/2 cup olive oil , or any neutral flavoured oil (vegetable, canola etc)
Burgers:
- 4 brioche buns (10-12cm / 4-5" wide) or other soft white buns, lightly toasted
- 1 1/2 cups shredded iceberg lettuce or cos lettuce (romaine)
- Gherkins , finely sliced
- Bang Bang Sauce (recommended!), Tartare Sauce (use this one), Peri-naise, even ketchup!
Instructions
ABBREVIATED RECIPE
- Blitz half prawns and garlic, mix with rest of pattie ingredients. Roll into balls, dredge in flour, egg, then flatten into patty in panko, flip to coat. Fry 4 minutes until golden, assemble burgers.
FULL RECIPE
- Thaw - If using frozen prawns, thaw thoroughly and discard excess water (you lose ~20% in weight in water), then chop into 8mm / 1/3" pieces.
- Blitz - Put half the prawns and garlic in a jug large enough to fit the head of a stick blender. Blitz until it becomes a paste (no need to puree 100% perfectly).
- Prawn patties mixture - Scrape into a bowl. Mix in the chopped prawns green onion, salt and pepper. The mix will be sloppy, but don’t worry - it firms up as it cooks, and the shaping method handles the softness. :)
- Dredging station - Put the egg and flour in separate shallow bowls, and the panko on a plate (need squishing space).
- Crumb - Using slightly wet hands, roll mixture into 4 balls. Coat ball in flour, then egg (let the excess drip off), then press down into a patty in the panko. Make it a smidge larger than the size of your bun (it shrinks a wee bit). Flip using a spatula, press down to adhere panko and make sure to coat the sides. Remove with a spatula onto a plate, repeat with remaining balls.
- Cook - Heat the oil in a large non-stick pan over medium high heat. Cook patties for 2 minutes on each side until golden, then remove onto a paper towel lined tray.
- Assemble burgers as follows - smear base with sauce. Top with prawn patty, cover with gherkins, pile on lettuce. Smear lid with sauce, place on top, EAT! (Homemade fries on the side are the ultimate sidekick but were out of reach today, so I used frozen).
Notes
1. Prawns / shrimp - You lose a lot of weight in water when thawing prawns so that needs to be factored in here. Start with 500g/1lb frozen, expect to lose 70g - 100g of weight in water as it thaws, to end up with ~400g/14oz thawed.
If peeling your own whole raw prawns, you'll need 700g (head and skin on) to yield approximately 400g of prawn meat.
2. Rolls - It is fine if your buns are a little larger, just make your patties larger and thinner. I prefer smaller because the patties are quite soft (softer than beef burgers) so can be tricky to handle if they are too large.
Making ahead - The burgers can be crumbed then left on a plate for a few hours to cook later. Crumb well, as the panko does absorb moisture as it sits around. Once cooked, the prawn patties will keep for 3 days in the fridge. To warm, I pan fried to re-crisp the coating. Not suitable for freezing.
Nutrition per burger assuming 1 1/2 tablespoons of Bang Bang Sauce is used and an approximate of the oil absorbed in each prawn pattie.
Nutrition
Calories: 675cal | Carbohydrates: 40g | Protein: 31g | Fat: 45g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 21g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 309mg | Sodium: 798mg | Potassium: 364mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 794IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 138mg | Iron: 2mg