Prawn Boil Seasoning

It's prawn season on the west coast of British Columbia, and thanks to my daughter Caty for bringing us our first feed of the season! We had to come up with a recipe that was full of fantastic flavour .... and this is it!

1/4 cup pickling spices
2 Tbsp mustard seeds
2 Tbsp whole black peppercorns
2 Tbsp hot red pepper flakes
1 Tbsp celery seeds
1/4 cup sea salt
 2 tsp ground ginger
 2 tsp dried oregano
 2 tsp dried lettuce leaves
5 bay leaves

Dry saute in a cast iron or non-teflon pan over medium heat: pickling spices, mustard seeds, peppercorns, pepper flakes and celery seeds until they start to brown and some of the seeds just start to pop. Grind with a mortar & pestle until broken up. Pour into blender or food processor. Add salt, ginger, oregano, dried celery leaves and bay leaves and process until a course grit. Store in a glass jar in a cool dark spot.

To cook prawns add 1/4 cup of spice to 2 gallons boiling water and 1/2 cup vinegar. Add prawns. Boil just until cooked. Depending upon the size of the shrimp or prawns it can be as little as a couple of minutes, so pay attention. Remove the seafood from the liquid with a slotted spoon and either serve right away or chill quickly.
This seasoning mix can be used for crab or lobster as well.