#ewew makes Shrimp & Mango Cocktail

This is a very popular starter found on many restaurant menus of western-type steakhouses.  I, too, order it quite frequently when I'm dining out.  The starter I'm talking about is the Shrimp & Mango Cocktail.  It can be served chilled or at room temperature.
 

This dish is very easy to replicate at home.  I would choose to make this appetiser, whenever I'm cooking a western meal, coz it's something that can be prepared ahead of time, thereby leaving you with more time to concentrate on the preparation of your mains.

Ingredients:

 

300g medium-sized prawns (about 15)

A few leaves of iceberg lettuce

1/2 a medium mango

3 tbsp store-bought mayonnaise

1 tbsp tomato ketchup 

 

Preparation:
 

Pluck a few leaves off the iceberg lettuce, wash and drain really well.  Then, shred it finely. 

Peel and dice the mango.

Leave the prawns unpeeled but remove the entrails (aka prawn poop) if you can.  Reason is because removing the shit entrails, when the prawns are not slit in the back, proves to be quite a daunting task.  So, I wouldn't bother since I'm not serving this dish at a fine dining restaurant or to a Masterchef judge!! :D :D  Although westerners would probably baulk if they find these entrails not removed but we Asians are more tolerant of this (we've eaten our fair share of 'prawn poop' with our "Char Kway Teow", I suppose).
 

Method:

Bring a pan of salted water to the boil.  Drop your prawns in and as soon as they turn pink (or curl up in a loose "C" shape), they're done.

In the meantime, prepare an ice bath of ice cubes + cold water.

Dish out the prawns and plunge them straight into an ice bath (a technique known as 'shocking').  This quickly stops the cooking process and ensure that your prawns do not overcook and stay crunchy to the bite.

Once it's cool enough to handle, peel them.  You'll end up with these.

Next, make your cocktail (or Rose Marie) sauce with 3 parts mayo to 1 part tomato ketchup.  Stir until well combined.

You're now ready to assemble your Shrimp & Mango Cocktail.

Line your cocktail glass (or bowl) with finely shredded lettuce at the bottom.

Spoon in your mango cubes.

Arrange a few shrimps on top of the mango cubes (about 3 - 4 in a cocktail glass and 6 - 7 in a bowl).

Spoon a good dollop of cocktail sauce on top.

Or, alternatively, you can mix your cocktail sauce with your mango cubes and shrimps and spoon them onto the bed of shredded lettuce (although, I think, the former has a nicer presentation)...it's really up to you.

And there you have it....a relatively easy starter of Shrimp & Mango Cocktail that's really popular with everyone ;)  

The crunch of the shrimps, coupled with the sweetness from the mango and the tangy cocktail sauce, makes this a very appealing starter...one that will earn you 'brownie' points with your family and friends (no doubt). 

Serves 2 as a starter (in a bowl) or 4 (in a cocktail glass)