As the festive season kicks off, this elegant and refreshing dish is sure to make an impact on guests amongst all the buffet regulars, and even squeezes in a few much needed greens!

Serves 4

Ingredients

2 tbsp olive oil

4 shallots, finely sliced

1 fat garlic clove, sliced

A pinch of fennel seeds, crushed

1 small fennel bulb, sliced

400g raw King prawns, peeled

½ cucumber, halved, deseeded and sliced

A squeeze of lemon

2 tbsp soured cream

Handful of freshly chopped parsley

Preparation

  1. Heat the oil in a frying pan or wok and gently fry the shallots for 3-5 minutes until softened. Stir in the garlic and fennel seeds and cook for 1 minute.
  2. Add the fennel to the pan with 4tbsp cold water. Cover with a lid and cook for around 3 minutes until the fennel is just tender.
  3. Stir in the prawns and season well. Cook until they’ve turned from grey to pink, then stir in the cucumber and the lemon juice. Warm everything through in the pan.
  4. Divide among four plates, top with the soured cream then scatter over the parsley.

Cook’s tip

If you’re buying whole raw King prawns for this recipe, keep four whole to decorate the top of the salad.

This recipe was produced by the’Vegetables from Europe: We Care, You Enjoy’ campaign, which is designed to explain the care that goes into growing fresh produce and to encourage people to eat more vegetables.