Best Garlic Butterfly Prawn Recipe You'll Ever Make (2024)

Saying this is the best garlic butterfly prawn recipe ever is a pretty big call. So I shall call this amazing butterfly shrimp with garlic butter.

If you're like me and head to a café or restaurant that claims to have the best coffee since coffee’s creation. Or the best omelette since a French chef picked up a whisk. The best hamburger since Americans put a patty between two buns, you generally don’t believe it.

This you must believe my friends. This is the easiest and the tastiest prawn (or shrimp for my American readers) recipe you will stumble across.

Sara xxx

Ingredients

The beauty is in the simplicity of this recipe. The use of easy to obtain, staple ingredients. Ingredients in most homes on a daily basis.

If you can’t get your hands on Godzilla sized prawns then choose the largest you can find. The smaller they are the more careful you need to be about the length of cooking time.

Oh, and did you know that prawns and shrimp are actually completely different shellfish?

• Prawns / Shrimp: Go for jumbo green prawns / raw shrimp. The bigger the better. I used 25cm (10 inch) long ones for this dish.
• Olive Oil: A light tasting olive oil to not overpower the butter taste.
• Garlic: Fresh garlic finely chopped. If they are small cloves you may want to increase the number of cloves you use.
• Lemon Zest: The addition of lemon zest in the marinade adds another dimension to the flavour profile of this dish.
• Cracked Pepper & Salt: A light sprinkle of both to enhance the flavour of the dish.
• Butter: One of the hero ingredients in this dish alongside the shellfish and garlic. Use good quality unsalted butter.
• White Wine: Use a dry white wine you enjoy drinking. Sauvignon Blanc works well.
• Lemon Juice: An acid balance for the butter, it lifts the flavour of the whole dish. If you can't use lemon juice due to the acidity leave it out and add a little more lemon zest at this point of cooking.
• Chives & Parsley: Use fresh finely chopped chives and parsley. Avoid using dried herbs in this dish unless you have absolutely no other choice.

Why is this recipe so popular?

You only have to read the comments below this recipe to see how loved it is amongst our readers. And for good reason. This recipe ticks a lot of boxes.

• Classic everyday ingredients that people know and love.
• Relatively easy recipe, perfect for beginners.
• The dish has wow factor when presented to guests.
• Finger licking sauce that you will be fighting your neighbour to mop up the last drops.
• Quick recipe.
• Ingredients can be prepared ahead of time, then cooked just before serving.

The garlic butterfly prawns make a great shared meal. Pile the prawns high on a serving platter alongside a basket overflowing with crusty warm bread. Dig in with fingers and mop up the addictive garlic, butter, and white sauce with the bread.

You could make this dish a little more refined and serve in individual bowls with juices poured over. Crusty bread again is a must, but you will find that the prawns peel easily from their shells when you use a knife and fork, saving your guests from messy fingers.

Recipe Walk Through

You deliciously sautee the prawns / shrimp in a heart-stopping amount of butter. I have often thought of using my confit smoked garlic butter instead of crushed garlic and butter. It would give this recipe a whole new slant.

1. Split prawns down the middle from underneath, top to bottom with a sharp knife. Do not cut all the way through, you are butterflying them and wanting to keep the shells, heads and tails attached to the prawn meat.
   
2. Press the prawns flat and devein. Clean out the mustard if you wish to.
   
3. In a large bowl mix olive oil, garlic, lemon zest, cracked pepper, and a pinch of salt. Place prawns in the bowl and toss gently to coat in the marinade thoroughly. Leave aside for 15 minutes for the flavours to infuse into the prawns.
   
4. Heat a large nonstick frying pan over medium heat. Fry the prawns flesh side down for around 4 minutes or until they start to change colour around the edges.
   
5. Add butter to the pan and swizzle it around the pan as it melts. Once the bottoms of the prawns have been coated in butter, turn them over. Add white wine, lemon juice, chives and parsley. Cook for a further few minutes.

   Once the flesh turns white from their raw translucence get them out of the pan. Place on a plate, cover them with foil, they will continue cooking while covered for a little bit longer.

6. Remove the prawns and place them on a serving plate. Continue to cook the white wine sauce for a further few minutes to reduce it slightly. Then pour over your prawns.
   
7. Serve garlic butterfly prawns / shrimp immediately with crusty bread to mop up the sauce.

Printable Recipe

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