Of course, the whole Australian ‘Shrimp on the Barbie’ television campaign in the late 80's was kind of flawed. We don’t actually have shrimp in Australia, so we would never throw one on a barbie—or anywhere else for that matter! What we do have, though, is wonderfully sweet, and vibrant-orange prawns, and those caught off the the fishing village, where my father resides, are some of the best. They’re called Yamba prawns, (and Sydney chefs love them). At the Yamba fish market you can be purchase a kilo of prawns, small, medium or large, (the large ones are big enough to fit snugly in the palm of your hand).
So the tradition at my dad’s house is this; buy a kilo of medium cooked prawns, dump them on the table and shell them yourself. Serve them with fresh bread, homemade butter if you have it, tartare sauce, wedges of lemon, a plethora of paper napkins, and a finger bowl for washing your hands. Dinner. In an instant.
The next day? A fisherman’s breakfast. Throw the leftover prawns in an soft, barely cooked omelette with plenty of Summer tomatoes, local cheddar cheese, Sea Salt flakes, (Murray River Pink is good.) and freshly ground Pepper.
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PRAWN OMELETTE: Saute one ripe, diced, Tomato in a non-stick pan in a bit of butter on medium-low heat. Add leftover cooked prawns, that have been shelled and deveined, then butterflied. Pour over 5 eggs loosely beaten. Let the mixture cook through, not stirring. Top with 4 slices of cheddar cheese, crumbled. Salt and Pepper. Fold the omelette over when it looks like it’s just cooked through and serve immediately with crusty bread. Serves 4.