This King Prawn Butterfly is a classic Indian restaurant appetizer, made with well-seasoned large prawns, coated with bread crumbs and fried to golden perfection. One of our favourite go-to appetizers that we have tried multiple times. So easy to make at home, kid-friendly, freezer-friendly and budget-friendly too!
I am a seafood lover, especially prawns. Sesame Prawn Toast and Crispy Honey Shrimp are my favourite starters that I love to serve at our gatherings and parties.
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What is Butterfly King Prawn?
Butterfly prawn is one of the much-loved Indian restaurants and takeaway starters in the UK. Succulent prawns are seasoned with a hint of Indian spices, breaded with golden bread crumbs and deep-fried until crispy. Delicious on its own or can be served together with tomato sauce, pakora sauce or chilli sauce.
Most store-bought frozen prawns and takeaway fried prawns are heavily breaded and prawn is no nowhere to be found. That's the reason we tried at home and it was a huge success. Sometimes I made them in a large batch and freeze some of it for later use.
What do we need?
You will need, large prawns, eggs, bread crumbs, plain flour, a handful of cupboard-friendly spices and oil for frying.
Prawns/Shrimp - Raw uncooked large prawns or shrimp are ideal to make butterfly prawn. Use peeled and deveined prawns with heads off tails left on. Tails-on shrimp is like a natural handle that is easy to bread. If you can get a pre-peeled or an easy-peeled prawn, you can use them as it can save some prep time.
Bread crumbs - I used golden bread crumbs to achieve the crunchy coating texture. You can also use white bread crumbs, panko or any dried bread crumbs that you have in your pantry.
Curry powder - Use your choice of Indian curry powder ( masala ) mild or hot. Curry powder usually consist of turmeric, cumin, chilli powder, ground coriander, pepper, cinnamon, etc. To bring colour and flavour to the prawns.
Plain flour - Regular all-purpose flour, plain flour or corn starch can be used to dredge the prawns.
Chilli powder - Add half a teaspoon of chilli powder for a kick of heat. If you are making for kids or milder flavour, swap chilli powder with paprika powder or you can skip it.
Garlic granules - A dash of garlic powder or garlic granules brings a hint of garlicky flavour which eliminate all the fishy smell from the seafood. Freshly grated garlic or garlic paste can be also used instead of garlic granules.
Salt and pepper - I add freshly ground black pepper for a peppery flavour and salt to taste.
Oil for frying - Use neutral flavour vegetable oil which doesn't overpower the butterfly shrimps. You will need to fill the frying pot with oil for about 3 inches to achieve perfect deep fry.
How to make it?
- Peel and devein the prawns and leave the tail. Pat dry them with a paper towel.
- How to butterfly prawns? To butterfly the prawns, use a sharp knife and cut along the back of the prawn but leave the tail tip. If there is any vein left inside, remove it and flatten the prawn by shallow scoring crisscross diagonally. Make sure not to cut right through.
- Whisk two eggs and season them with salt, pepper, chilli powder, curry powder, and garlic powder. Add breadcrumbs and plain flour in a separate bowl or tray.
- How to make prawn breading? First, hold the butterflied prawn from the tail, dip it in the eggs and then dredge it in the plain flour. Next, dip it again in the egg and then dredge it in the bread crumbs. Gently pressed it with your fingers to coat it evenly.
- Place the coated prawn on the tray and set it aside. Repeated the process until all the prawns are breaded.
- Heat the oil into medium-high heat about 330-340°F ( 160-170° C ) and fry the breaded prawns for 3-4 minutes or until crispy golden brown.
- Remove from oil and place it over the paper towel. Transfer to a serving plate and serve immediately with a choice of dipping sauce.
- To make easy dipping sauce, mix tomato ketchup, mint yoghurt sauce, lime juice, salt and finely chopped coriander in a small bowl.
Pro Tips
- It's important to maintain the oil temperature around 330°F ( 160°C ). High-heat oil can burn the coating easily and the low-heat oil can make the prawns coating texture greasy.
- Use the largest prawns/shrimp that you can find, as the prawns can shrink a bit when you deep fry them.
- Do not heavily batter the prawns, gently press them both in the flour and bread crumbs.
- Customize the seasonings, by adding or reducing the spices to your preference.
- Stain the fried bread crumbs with mesh strainer between while deep frying.
FAQ
Pakora sauce, yoghurt mint sauce, tomato ketchup, sweet chilli sauce or simply serve it with your choice of dipping sauce.
Once the prawns are breaded, place them over the tray and freeze them in the fridge until they are set. Then transfer to freezer safe bags or container and freeze them. It usually last in the fridge for up to 3 months.
Recommend to use netural flavour vegetable oil like, sunflower, corn, canola, grapeseed, peanut, etc.
If you prefer not to deep fry the prawn, air frying is the next best option. Spray a bit of cooking oil over the coated prawns and fry it in 400°F ( 200°C ) pre-heated air-fryer for about 10-12 minutes or until crispy. Flip half way through.
Deep frying and air frying creates the best result. Baked butterfly prawns coating texture is not as crispy as deep-fried or air-fried prawns. However, if you wish to bake, you can bake in the pre-heated 400°F ( 200°C ) pre-heated oven for about 15-20 minutes or until crispy by flipping half way through.
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King Prawn Butterfly
Ingredients
- 14 Large Prawn About 350g (12oz), Large king prawn, tiger prawns, or shrimp, ( peeled, deveined, tails-on )
- 2 Egg Whisked
- 100 g Plain flour All-purpose-flour
- 150 g Golden bread crumbs Golden/white or panko bread crumbs ( see details in note )
- Oil for frying Vegetable or neutral flavour oil
Seasonings
- ½ tsp Curry powder Hot or mild Indian curry powder
- ½ tsp Chilli powder Or paprika
- ½ tsp Garlic powder
- ½ tsp Pepper
- ½ tsp Salt
Dipping Sauce
- 3 tbsp Tomato Ketchup
- 2 tsp Mint yoghurt sauce Or plain yoghurt
- 1 tbsp Lime juice Or lemon juice
- 1 tsp Chopped coriander Finely chopped coriander or mint leaves
- ⅛ tsp Salt Or salt to taste
Instructions
Prepare the prawns
- Peel and devein the prawns and leave the tail on. Pat dry them with a paper towel.
- To butterfly the prawns, use a sharp knife and cut along the back of the prawn but leave the tail tip. If there is any vein left inside, remove it and flatten the prawn by shallow scoring crisscross diagonally. Make sure not to cut right through.
- Whisk two eggs and season them with salt, pepper, chilli powder, curry powder, and garlic powder. Add breadcrumbs and plain flour in a separate bowl or tray.
- First, hold the butterflied prawn from the tail, dip it in the eggs and then dredge it in the plain flour. Next, dip it again in the egg and then dredge it in the bread crumbs. Gently pressed it with your fingers to coat it evenly.
- Place the coated prawn on the tray and set it aside. Repeated the process until all the prawns are breaded.
Deep Frying
- Heat the oil into medium-high heat about 330-340°F ( 160-170° C ) and fry the breaded prawns for 3-4 minutes or until crispy golden brown.
- Remove from oil and place it over the paper towel. Transfer to a serving plate and serve immediately with a choice of dipping sauce.
Dipping sauce
- Add tomato ketchup, mint yoghurt sauce, salt, lime juice, chopped coriander in a small bowl and mix it well.
Notes
- Baking Option: Deep frying and air frying create the best result. However, you can bake in the pre-heated 400°F ( 200°C ) pre-heated oven. Spray cooking oil over the breaded prawns and bake for about 15-20 minutes or until crispy by flipping halfway through.
- Air Frying Option: Spray a bit of cooking oil over the coated prawns and fry it in 400°F ( 200°C ) pre-heated air-fryer for about 10-12 minutes or until crispy. Flip halfway through.
- How to prep ahead? Once the prawns are breaded, place them over the tray and freeze them in the fridge until they are set. Then transfer to freezer-safe bags or containers and freeze them. Fry the breaded prawns directly from the freezer, do not need to defrost.
Sasha says
Wow! It’s like a prawn tempura but in Indian flavors. Interesting! I can’t wait to try!
Khin says
It is very similar to Japanese prawn katsu but with an Indian flavour! Hope you enjoy it.
May says
Good starter recipe
Mandy says
This is the recipe I am waiting for. I always have this crispy prawn at Indian restaurant. Thank you.
Khin says
My pleasure, Mandy. Hope you enjoy this recipe!
Amreen says
Prawn butterfly is my son's favourite. Thanks for sharing. I have a packet full of panko at home. Is it ok to use panko bread crumbs?
Khin says
Absolutely fine to make it with panko. My little one loved it a lot. Hope your son enjoys this recipe too!