Coconut prawns in the air fryer

Name: Coconut prawns in the air fryer
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 40 g Wheat flour; 2 u Egg; 0.5 teaspoons Salt; 1 u Lime; 1 tablespoon Sunflower Oil; 50 g Desiccated Coconut; 80 ml sweet chilli sauce; 50 g Breadcrumbs; 500 g King Prawns; 1 u Mango

Langostinos con coco en freidora de aire

Easy

Contains allergens

Cereales con glutenHuevosCrustáceos

Author: Equipo Cocinoa
Preparation time: 40 min
Servings: 4

Summary

Prawns coated in desiccated coconut and panko breadcrumbs, crisp and golden in a few minutes in the air fryer. Dip them in a quick mango and sweet chilli sauce for a starter or a laid-back dinner.

Ingredients

4 servings

40 g Wheat flour
2 u Egg
0.5 teaspoons Salt
1 u Lime (half juiced, half cut into wedges)
1 tablespoon Sunflower Oil (sprayed or brushed on)
50 g Desiccated Coconut (unsweetened)
80 ml sweet chilli sauce
50 g Breadcrumbs (ideally panko)
500 g King Prawns (raw, peeled and deveined, tails on (about 20))
1 u Mango (ripe, for the dip)

Instructions

Pat the prawns very dry with kitchen paper and season lightly with salt. Set out three shallow dishes: one with the flour, one with the beaten eggs and one with the breadcrumbs and coconut mixed together.
5 min
Hold each prawn by the tail and dip it in the flour (shake off the excess), then in the egg (let it drip) and finally in the coconut mixture, pressing with your hand so it sticks well. Leave the tail uncoated and line them up on a tray as you go.
10 min
Preheat the air fryer to 190 °C for 3 minutes. Lay the prawns in the basket in a single layer, not touching; you will usually need two batches. Spray or brush the tops with a little oil.
3 min
Cook for 8 minutes at 190 °C, turning them with tongs after 4 minutes and spraying the upper side with oil. They are ready when the coating is golden and the flesh inside is white and opaque. Repeat with the second batch.
16 min
While they cook, peel the mango, blitz half the flesh with the sweet chilli sauce and the juice of half the lime, then stir in the rest of the mango, finely diced.
5 min
Let the prawns rest for 1 minute on a wire rack so the coating does not go soggy underneath, and serve with the dip and wedges from the other half of the lime.
1 min

Notes

Coconut shrimp is a staple of beach bars and restaurants in Florida and the Caribbean, where it is deep-fried; in the air fryer it comes out just as crunchy with a single tablespoon of oil. Panko breadcrumbs, with their coarse, airy crumb, give the best texture; ordinary breadcrumbs make a denser coating. If your prawns are frozen, thaw them in the fridge the day before and dry them thoroughly, or the coating will slide off. Coconut toasts quickly: from minute 6 keep an eye on it so it does not darken, especially in small air fryers where the element sits closer. They are done when the flesh is white and opaque all the way through (63 °C in the centre); a couple of extra minutes makes them rubbery. Timings vary between models, so check the first batch after 6 minutes, and use the wire rack in oven-style air fryers. In a conventional oven, bake them on a rack at 220 °C (fan) for about 10-12 minutes, turning them halfway. They are best eaten straight away; any leftovers keep for one day in the fridge and can be reheated in the air fryer at 180 °C for 3 minutes. Variations: add lime zest to the coconut mixture, or swap the prawns for strips of chicken breast and cook them until they reach 74 °C.