Prawn Lasagne with Habanero Oil
Mains
Ingredients
250g fresh lasagne sheets
130g double cream, plus 1 tablespoon to serve
100g Parmesan, finely grated
10g fresh chives, finely chopped
For the prawn ragù:
5 tbsp olive oil
½ onion, finely chopped
5 cloves of garlic, crushed
200g sweet, ripe cherry tomatoes, such as Datterini, finely chopped
1 tbsp fine salt
500g raw peeled king prawns, very finely chopped to mince consistency (about 1kg if you’re starting with shell-on prawns – use the shells to make a stock)
1 dried habanero chilli (or chilli flakes if you prefer less heat)
80g tomato purée/paste
2 tbsp white miso paste
about 50 twists of freshly ground black pepper
100g white wine
500g fish, shellfish or chicken stock (unsalted liquid stock, not cubes)
For the Habanero oil:
1 dried habanero chilli, seeds discarded, finely chopped (use less habanero or a pinch of regular chilli flakes if you prefer)
½ tsp chipotle flakes
2 tsp tomato purée/paste
120g olive oil
½ tsp sweet paprika
¼ tsp fine salt
Directions
For the ragù, put 4 tablespoons of the oil into a large sauté pan on a medium heat with the onion, garlic, cherry tomatoes and fine salt. Fry, stirring often, for 8–10 minutes or until the onions are soft and golden and the tomatoes have broken down.
Increase the heat to high, add the chopped prawns and fry for another 8 minutes, stirring every now and then, until the prawn mince has taken on some colour.
If you don’t have a food processor, very finely chop all the vegetables and prawns by hand.
Add the habanero (or chilli flakes), tomato purée/paste, miso and plenty of pepper. Continue to fry for 3 minutes, stirring every now and then. Turn the heat down if the mixture starts to catch or burn.
Pour over the wine and let it bubble away for 30 seconds. Add the stock (or water) and the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil, bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer gently for about 18–20 minutes. Remove the habanero, squeezing it into the sauce first if you like heat.
Meanwhile, put all the ingredients for the habanero oil into a small saucepan and place on a medium heat. Mix well and heat until gently bubbling, about 1½ minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside. Once cool, transfer to a clean jar (you’ll only need a couple of tablespoons for this recipe).
Preheat the oven to 200°C fan/220°C.
To assemble the lasagne, cover the bottom of a small baking dish with lasagne sheets, about 20 x 20cm or a similar size, then spread over a fifth of the ragù. Follow with a fifth each of the cream, Parmesan and chives. Continue layering in the same way until you’ve used up all the ingredients. Drizzle over ½ tablespoon of the habanero oil, cover tightly with foil and bake for 20 minutes.
Increase the oven heat to 230°C fan/250°C, remove the foil and bake for another 12 minutes, or until the edges are crisp and the pasta is cooked through.
Leave to cool for 10 minutes. Finish with the remaining 1 tablespoon of cream and a good drizzle of the habanero oil, and serve.