Grilled prawns and beetroot with chilli and smouldering cinnamon
SERVES 8
‘This is a riff on a dish we had on the Alinea opening menu that involved beetroot and smoking cinnamon. Brown spices and beetroot are a proven combination, but the kid in me wanted to involve some whimsy. During my childhood I hated the spicy cinnamon chewing gum known as Big Red, but as an adult I enjoy it. I basically replicate that sensation with the simple addition of chilli – I use dried Korean chilli flakes. Here, we turn the eating utensil, in this case the cinnamon skewer, into the equivalent of an incense stick that you eat from.’
GRAPEFRUIT GLAZE
• juice of 4 pink grapefruit
• juice of 1 lemon
• 50 g white sugar
• 50 ml soya sauce
• a pinch of Korean chilli flakes
BEETROOT AND PRAWNS
• 2 small beetroots, trimmed
• 40 g sea salt
• 2 ℓ water
• 6 cinnamon quills (the longest you can find), split in half lengthways
• 12 uncooked prawns, peeled and cleaned
• grapeseed oil, for brushing
• mint, torn, to serve
• finely grated grapefruit rind, to serve
• Korean chilli flakes, to serve
1. MAKE THE GRAPEFRUIT GLAZE: Strain grapefruit juice into a saucepan, add sugar, soya sauce and chilli, and simmer until a light syrup forms (45–50 minutes). Cool to room temperature.
2. COOK THE BEETROOT AND PRAWNS: Combine beetroots, salt and water in a large saucepan over medium-high heat and stir to dissolve salt. Bring to the boil, reduce heat to medium and simmer 25–30 minutes, until a knife inserted into the beetroot withdraws without resistance. Drain, cool to room temperature, then peel and cut each beetroot into 6 wedges.
3. Heat a grill to very high. Carefully skewer a piece of beetroot on a cinnamon stick followed by a prawn, then brush with grapeseed oil and season to taste. Repeat with remaining beetroot and prawns. Grill, turning once, until prawns are just cooked through (2 minutes each side), then dip in grapefruit glaze and let the excess drain off.
4. Arrange on a platter, scatter with mint, grapefruit rind and chilli flakes, ignite one end of each cinnamon quill with a blowtorch (optional) until they start to smoke, then serve.