---
title: "What’s cooking today: Lime & lemongrass prawn skewers"
description: "I served these braaied prawns with basmati rice cooked in coconut water, a true revelation. It gave the rice a gentle coconut flavour and was a lovely backdrop for these tangy prawn skewers."
type: "NewsArticle"
publisher: "Daily Maverick"
site: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za"
section: "TGIFOOD"
author: "Tony Jackman"
author_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/author/tonyjackman/"
canonical_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2021-03-09-whats-cooking-today-lime-lemongrass-prawn-skewers/"
published: "2021-03-09T12:37:39"
lang: "en-ZA"
word_count: 310
---

# What’s cooking today: Lime & lemongrass prawn skewers

> I served these braaied prawns with basmati rice cooked in coconut water, a true revelation. It gave the rice a gentle coconut flavour and was a lovely backdrop for these tangy prawn skewers.

By Tony Jackman · Published 9 March 2021, 14:37 SAST

## Content

**Ingredients**

24 prawns, heads removed, the tails cleaned, deveined and butterflied

250 g desiccated coconut

Cold water

Basmati rice

2 sticks lemongrass

Juice of 2 limes

1 Tbsp fish sauce

1 green chilli, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

Salt to taste

A grinding of black pepper

**Method**

Soak 6 bamboo skewers in cold water for half an hour.

Clean the prawns, dehead them, remove the veins, rinse, dry and keep aside.

Pour desiccated coconut into a bowl and pour in cold water to more than cover the coconut. Cover with cling film and leave to steep for 2 or 3 hours. Strain and keep the coconut water to cook the rice in.

Boil the basmati rice in the coconut water, reducing to a simmer, covered, and cooking until all the coconut water is absorbed and the rice is fluffy.

Bash the lemongrass stalks with a heavy object, remove the hard outer layers, and chop the white inner part finely.

Marinate the prawns in a bowl with the lemongrass, lime juice, garlic, chilli, fish sauce, salt and pepper, for an hour or more.

Skewer 4 of the marinated prawns onto each of 6 skewers.

Cook the skewered prawns over hot coals for 2 to 3 minutes on each side.

Serve with a green diced salad of cucumber, green pepper, spring onions and chilli, dressed with a vinaigrette of 1 Tbsp each of brown rice vinegar, fish sauce, ponzu, and a splash of chilli oil. **DM/TGIFood**

*Our Thank God It’s Food newsletter is sent to subscribers every Friday at 6pm, and published on the*[*TGIFood platform*](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/section/tgifood/)*on Daily Maverick. It’s all about great reads on the themes of food and life. Subscribe*[*here*](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/about/newsletter/)*.*

*Send your recipes to tony@dailymaverick.co.za with a hi-resolution horizontal (landscape) photo.*

*To enquire about Tony Jackman’s book, foodSTUFF (Human & Rousseau) please email him at*[*tony@dailymaverick.co.za*](mailto:tony@dailymavericl.co.za)