With Chinese New Year around the corner, cook this auspicious and delicious stir-fried Kam Heong Prawns (金香蝦碌) to celebrate the festive season. Kam Heong (金香) is Cantonese dialect and literally translate as “golden fragrance”.
The spice blend includes dried shrimps, curry powder, shallots and garlic. This sauce is popularly used to stir fry clams, crabs and in this case, prawns. The word for prawn sounds like “ha” in Cantonese and some other Chinese dialects, symbolizing laughter (笑 “哈哈”) and happiness in the new year.
Step-by-Step Photos
Check out this detailed tutorial on how to de-vein prawns with shells still on.
Soak dried shrimps in small cup of hot water until softened. Pat dry the dried shrimps on kitchen towels and chop finely. Combine soaking water with curry powder to form a paste.
Heat cooking oil in wok. Stir fry chopped dried shrimps for 1 minute. Then add the aromatics and stir fry until fragrant.
Add prawns and curry paste to the wok. Stir fry until prawns turned fully opaque, coating them evenly in the sauce.
Kam heong (金香) is Cantonese dialect and literally translate as “golden fragrance”. The aromatic spice blend is popularly used to stir fry crabs, chicken, clams and in this recipe, prawns. The aroma of the curry powder and curry leaves totally stands out in this dish.