Rush Hour!

Once again tonights evening meal was a race against the clock, although now that my official working week is reduced to two days only this should start to become a thing of the past; for the majority of the time at least

Why the rush tonight then? Well my dad doesn’t get home from work until around 6pm, the electrician was due to come at 6:30 and then I’d to be out of the house to go to work by 8:30, not a great deal of free time to cook dinner, eat without giving ourselves indigestion and get tidied up too, oh yes and have a bit of a relax before going to work, whoa what an evening.

The solution for a quick meal turned out to be really simple; saffron rice with harrisa prawns. I got the idea from my Israeli forum friend Francesca who had cooked a similar dish a couple of months back. Looking back at that glorious meal gave me inspiration and my kitchen cupboards and refrigerator proved to have all the necessary goods (another thank you to the lovely Francesca here too because the harrisa came all the way from Israel, yes you’ve guessed it, how lucky am I!), always a bonus when you’re struggling for time and tiredness is against you as well.

The saffron rice formed the base of the dish and despite only containing saffron and sherry as the flavouring with some peas & sweet corn added for texture. It was so mouthwatering, although comfortingly bland subtle too, creating a great base for the harrisa cream to seep into and give great texture to combine with the gorgeous fresh tasting prawns. 

Despite the spice and deep flavouring of the harrisa the prawns kept their lovely sweet flavour of the sea and weren’t at all overpowered, something that had concerned me during the cooking process. I used small prawns (shrimp) as that’s all I had available but king prawns or Dublin Bay prawns would be absolutely delightful in a dish like this. My mouth is watering now at the thought.

The Recipe:

Saffron Rice:

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 spring onions, finely sliced
• 250g long grain rice
• 450ml vegetable stock
• 50ml dry sherry
• 1/4 teaspoon saffron threads
• 100g peas
• 100g sweetcorn

1. Heat the oil in a large frying pan and add the spring onions, fry until softened.
2. Add the rice and saffron, toss well in the oil before adding the sherry, allow to cook until the sherry has been absorbed.
3. Add the stock and vegetables, bring to the boil and cover with a lid.
4. Reduce the heat to a low simmer and cook for 12 minutes.
5. Remove from the heat and allow to stand for 5 minutes while you cook the prawns.

Harrisa Prawns:

• 200ml double cream
• 1-2 teaspoons harrisa paste
• 250g prawns or shrimp

1. Heat the cream in a small frying pan or saucepan until just below boiling point and add the harrisa.
2. Cook for 1 minute, whisking to incorporate the paste.
3. Add the prawns and cook for 2-3 minutes or until pink and cooked through.
4. Serve over the saffron rice, accompanied by bread if you wish.