Sides & Nibbles
West Coast Crayfish with Curried Citrus Butter
Serves 4 (as a side dish)
Ingredients
- 4 crayfish or crayfish tails
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
- sunflower oil
- 4 lemons, cut into wedges
Salad:
- 4 baby Cos lettuce leaves, divided and washed
- 10 radishes, sliced
- 3 spring onions, chopped
- 2 avocadoes, sliced
- 1 papaya, sliced
- 2 tbsp fresh coriander or micro salad leaves, to garnish
Salad dressing:
- 50ml (1/4 cup) extra virgin olive oil
- 50ml (1/4 cup) sunflower oil
- 2 tbsp dry white wine
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1/2 tsp caster sugar
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
Curried citrus butter:
- 2 tsp curry powder
- 1 tsp English mustard powder
- juice of 1/2 lemon
- 225g softened Kerrygold Pure Irish Unsalted Butter
- 2 cloves of garlic, crushed
- coarse sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Directions
Recipe by Rozanne Stevens (rozannestevens.com)
This recipe reminds me so much of holidays in Paternoster on the West Coast. Beautiful beaches, amazing light for photographs and the best local seafood. You can get a huge variety of freshly caught and prepared seafood, crayfish being one of my favourite. All you really need is simple lemon and butter and it is bliss to eat.
But the curried citrus butter in the recipe is a special touch if you are entertaining. You can make it ahead and freeze it, rolled into a baking paper ‘Christmas cracker’ and slice off coins as you need it. It will go beautifully on any fish or seafood, especially prawns.
This recipe reminds me so much of holidays in Paternoster on the West Coast. Beautiful beaches, amazing light for photographs and the best local seafood. You can get a huge variety of freshly caught and prepared seafood, crayfish being one of my favourite. All you really need is simple lemon and butter and it is bliss to eat.
But the curried citrus butter in the recipe is a special touch if you are entertaining. You can make it ahead and freeze it, rolled into a baking paper ‘Christmas cracker’ and slice off coins as you need it. It will go beautifully on any fish or seafood, especially prawns.
Method:
- To make the butter, dissolve the curry powder and mustard powder in the lemon juice. Add the spice mixture to the softened butter along with the crushed garlic and a good pinch of salt and pepper. Scoop the butter onto a sheet of parchment paper. Shape into a log and wrap up in the paper like a Christmas cracker, tying the ends with string. Place in the fridge or even the freezer to slice discs whenever needed.
- Put all the salad dressing ingredients in a jam jar with a lid and give it a good shake. Dress the salad just before serving.
- To cook the crayfish, place each crayfish on a board, belly down, tail outstretched. Rest a large, very sharp knife, down the length of the back from the small horn between the eyes. Press down or hit the knife with a mallet to split the shell neatly, then cut through the tail. Scrape out and discard the entrails. Rinse the crayfish and pat them dry.
- Season the crayfish with salt and pepper and brush with some melted curried citrus butter. Place the crayfish flesh side down on a medium-hot grill just long enough to lightly brown the meat. Lightly oil the lemon wedges and grill until they’re just charred.
- Turn the crayfish, and cook for a further 15–20 minutes, until the flesh is opaque and pulls away easily from the shell. Dress with lots of butter.
- Just before serving, toss the salad together and dress lightly.
- Serve the crayfish with curried citrus butter, charred lemon wedges and dressed salad.
