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Butterflying prawns

Butterflying prawns is the process of cutting them in half lengthways and flattening them out. It's useful for grilling and barbecuing.

-Uncurl the prawn, belly-side facing upwards.

-Cut a line from underneath the head of the prawn to the tip of the tail using a sharp knife, making sure the knife cuts through the meat but not the outer shell of the prawn.

-Open up the prawn fully. If you like, you can remove the black intestinal tract from the prawn by scraping it out with the tip of a sharp knife. This is called ‘deveining’.

-Grill on the butterflied side.

See recipe in full

Chargrilled sweet and sour prawns Chargrilled sweet and sour prawns

By Mitch Tonks

Recipes using this technique

Starters & nibbles

Skill level

Intermediate

Equipment you will need for this technique

  • Sharp knife
  • Chopping board

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