Vietnamese Lemongrass & Kaffir Lime Prawn Balls

With Nuoc Cham & Crispy Peanut Crunch

DIFFICULTY: Easy

PREP + COOK TIME: 60 minutes

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Ingredients

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Ingredients ✴

Lemongrass Prawn Balls: 

• 1 stalk lemongrass, finely chopped 

• 3 spring onions, green part only (thinly slice the white part for the salad)

• 3 kaffir lime leaves, stem removed & roughly chopped 

• 1 large bunch (about 15g) coriander stems, roughly chopped 

• 2 cloves garlic, peeled 

• 650g frozen prawns, defrosted & drained 

• ⅓ cup panko breadcrumbs

• 1 tsp each flaky salt & caster sugar 

Nuoc Cham: 

• 1 red chili, thinly sliced 

• 4 cloves garlic, minced 

• ⅓ cup each fish sauce* & freshly squeezed lime juice 

• ¼ cup caster sugar 

Noodles & Salad:

• 200g mung bean vermicelli noodles 

• 1 Tbsp each chili oil, soy sauce & kecap manis 

• 2 carrots, peeled & cut into matchsticks 

• 2 baby cos lettuces, shredded

• ¼ cup each crushed roasted peanuts & crispy shallots

• 200g mung bean sprouts 

• Fresh coriander & thinly sliced red onion, to garnish 

Directions

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Directions ✴

Prep prawn balls: Add lemongrass, green part of the spring onion, kaffir lime leaves, coriander stems & garlic to a food processor. Pulse several times into a coarse paste. Pat prawns dry with a paper towel (make sure you pat them dry otherwise the mixture will be sloppy), and add to the processor along with the panko, salt & sugar. Pulse again, until the mixture starts to bind together but small chunks of prawn remain. Using oiled hands, roll heaped tablespoons of mixture into balls. Place on a dinner plate and set aside in the fridge. 

Nuoc cham: Combine all ingredients together in a bowl along with 2 Tbsp water. Whisk together until sugar has dissolved. Set aside to serve. *start with ¼ cup of fish sauce and adjust to taste, some fish sauces are saltier than others. 

Noodles: Add vermicelli to a large bowl and cover with boiling water. Set aside to soak for 5 minutes until tender. Drain and rinse with cold running water, until cooled. Drain off excess water and return to the bowl, along with chili oil, soy sauce & kecap manis. Toss together, until noodles are well coated. Set aside to serve. 

Salad: Prep veggies and set aside to serve. Toss peanuts & crispy shallots together with a pinch of salt. 

Cook prawn balls: Heat 3 Tbsp neutral oil in a large non-stick fry-pan on medium high heat. Cook prawn balls for about 4 minutes each side, until golden and cooked through. 

Serve noodles, veggies & prawn balls in bowls topped with the coriander, crushed peanut & crispy shallot mixture, spring onion & red onion. Drizzle over nuoc cham.