Spicy Prawn cocktail is a classic starter dish where juicy prawns are tossed in traditional pink Marie Rose sauce with an added punch. A classic 70’s starter dish that never goes out of style. Serve as starter, for salads or along with mains.
You can’t get a starter recipe than this prawn cocktail recipe. It’s one of the best quickest and easiest starter recipe. A classic traditional salad that you can’t go wrong with. Simply cook prawns, squeeze out water and then toss in classic pink Marie rose sauce! So delicious!
Prawn cocktail or shrimp cocktail is a retro classic that easily is the most-favourite dish fro everyone, from kids to adults. A no-hassel recipe that you can make for any cocktail party or simply for the love of seafood.
Those 70’s style starter prawn cocktail does not get old even today. We are taking the retro classic prawn cocktail and dressing it in rick creamy-mayonnaise dressing with a kick to it. For those who love a little extra punch this spicy prawn cocktail will be your ultimate starter.
Any good dish calls for best quality ingredients. Same goes with prawn cocktail recipe. You don’t compromise with taste using frozen prawns or cheap mayonnaise. Use best quality, fresh prawns and bet mayo, preferably the ones made at home(fresh and delicious). Because frozen prawns when defrosted, turns watery and tasteless. The texture of defrosted prawns isn’t great either for a good tasty prawn cocktail.
Prawn cocktail sauce is at the simple classic Marie Rose sauce. It’s a pink creamy sauce which is a simple blend of mayonnaise, tomato sauce, and some optional seasoning of dash of salt, ground pepper, sriracha sauce, a pinch of cayenne pepper and finally little horseradish if you wish to add to the flavor, A perfect cocktail sauce that you can serve with almost any starter.
New Years Eve is just a few days away. How do you guys ring in the new year? We always keep it low-key. Stay at home and have a quite evening with just our kids. Or we end up catching with friends in one of our houses and celebrate the evening partying with delicious food and drinks. I prefer to stay at home for the New Years Eve, going to a crowded places, with loud music and chaos is not my style. Call me old school, but that’s the way I prefer. And when you have kids this is the best way to any party. Family or friends, food and drinks. Doesn’t get better than this, right!
We plan to say ‘CHEERS’ on the New Years Eve with a traditional starter ,the 70’s style feast! It’s super quick to make and sophisticated enough which you can put up on New Years Eve party table.
Serving prawn cocktail has to be done the right way. Serve it in elegant glasswares or make lettuce cups and serve it as individual portions.
How To Make The Best Prawn Cocktail
For the cocktail sauce – whisk together mayonnaise, ketchup, sriracha sauce, cayenne pepper, pepper powder, salt and dash of lime juice. Whisk well and refrigerate until use.
Cook prawn in water seasoned with salt.
Pro-Tip : I devein the prawns before cooking. I also prefer removing the head , but leave the tail on. It’s so hard to devein it once cooked.
Do not over cook prawns. Remove heads and peel them. For serving purpose keep a few prawns with tail on.
Pro Tip : Prawn cocktail recipe can be easily prepped ahead. You can prep prawns and sauce and refrigerate it over night. Just before serving toss prawns in sauce and serve with fresh iceberg lettuce cups.
Prawn Cocktail Ingredients
Fresher prawns makes a great prawn cocktail
Good quality smoother Mayonnaise
Tomato ketchup
Salt and pepper to season
Lettuce leaves to serve
Lime wedge for garnish and to serve
Optional-
To the Marie-Rose sauce I like to add a kick. So to the classic cocktail sauce I added
Sriracha sauce,
Cayenne pepper
Horseradish (grated).
Alternatively you can use Worcestershire sauce, tobacco sauce or any other hot sauce that you may have in your pantry in place of sriracha sauce.
You can add these ingredients for added flavour and spice, or leave it out completely if you say you’r palate is super satisfied with the classic cocktail sauce 😉
How to Boil Prawns for Prawns Cocktail
Many super markets sell cooked(boiled prawns). But it may not be easily available to everyone.
You can easily boil or cook prawns on your own. Doesn’t take much time. In matter of minutes it’ll be ready.
Bring a pot of water to boil. You can season or flavour it with a bay leave, few whole black pepper corns along with salt. Once water comes to boil, add prawns (shelled or with shells but remember to devein the prawns) to the boiling water.
Cook until pink and slightly firm to touch. It should take about 3 to 4 minutes.
Drain prawns immediately and cool it under running water.
How to Prawn/Shrimp Cocktail Sauce
The key to a delicious prawn cocktail is a good rose mayonnaise or Rose Marie sauce as it’s called. And key to a good pinkish rose mayonnaise or cocktail sauce is the mayonnaise itself. A good quality smoother mayonnaise works best for making the best cocktail sauce for prawn cocktail.
To make prawn cocktail sauce, combine good mayonnaise that is smooth in texture, tomato ketchup, Sriracha sauce, lime juice, horseradish, ground pepper and salt in bowl. Whisk well and make a smooth sauce. You can store this in fridge for about 24 hours.
Looking for more finger food for New Years party celebrations?
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- 1 lb freshest and best prawns
- 1 lemon or lime quartered
- 3 quarts water
- 1 bay leaf
- 8 whole black pepper corns
- Generous pinch of kosher salt
- 2 cups iceberg lettuce or romaine, shredded
- 4 tablespoon mayonnaise preferably whole egg mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon tomato ketchup
- 1 teaspoon sriracha sauce or Worcestershire sauce or tabasco sauce or any hot sauce
- 1 tablespoon horseradish finely grated creamed
- 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
- Pinch of cayenne pepper
- Pinch of salt
- Bring a pot of water to boil. You can season or flavour it with a bay leave, few whole black pepper corns along with salt. Once water comes to boil, add prawns (shelled or with shells but remember to devein the prawns) to the boiling water.
- Pro-Tip : I devein the prawns before cooking. I also prefer removing the head , but leave the tail on. It’s so hard to devein it once cooked.
- For serving purpose keep a few prawns with tail on.
- Cook until pink and slightly firm to touch. It should take about 3 to 4 minutes.
- Drain prawns immediately and cool it under running water.
- To make prawn cocktail sauce, combine good mayonnaise that is smooth in texture, tomato ketchup, Sriracha sauce, lime juice, horseradish, ground pepper and salt in bowl. Whisk well and make a smooth sauce. You can store this in fridge for about 24 hours.
- Note - Just before serving, toss cooked prawns in the sauce.
- Place cooked prawns in large bowl, add sauce over it and toss well until every prawn is coated well in the sauce.
- Note - If sauce seems thin, add a little more of each of the sauce ingredients over the prawns and toss again.
- If serving in lettuce cups, do not shred all lettuce leave, keep few lettuce cups whole.
- If serving in martini glasses for sophisticated elegant look, shred lettuce leaves and divide it between the martini cups or any glass ware that you want to use to serve these cocktail prawns.
- Arrange neatly prawns tossed in sauce. This is an important step.
- Garnish with lemon wedged and serve immediately.
Cooked prawns and cocktail rose Marie sauce can be made ahead and stored in refrigerator for about 24 hours.
Toss prawns in sauce only before serving.
Leftover cocktail prawns can be refrigerated for a day. But best eaten as soon as its made.
Peeling prawns and deveining them needs practise. Prep time is how much time it took me to devein and peel prawns. Depending on how well practised you are to handle prawns the time will very.
“PIN IT” TO YOUR STARTERS BOARD
Mahy Elamin
This is a fabulous starter for a special meal. Easy to make and prepare beforehand. Only need to assemble before serving. Always a hit with guests. Will be making it as a starter for New Year eve dinner.
jyothirajesh
Thank you Mahy
Cheese Curd In Paradise
shrimp cocktail is my favorite. I love that you made a spicy and creamy sauce. I have not had something like this before and can’t wait to try it!
jyothirajesh
Thank you
Marisa Franca
This is an elegant and easy first course to serve at any party. The shrimp looks so pretty inside of a glass with a stem. We love our shrimp with a spicy horseradish seafood cocktail sauce. We’ll have to try your pretty pink one next time.
jyothirajesh
Thanks Marisa