Vietnamese Grilled Sugarcane Prawns

We love these at our favourite restaurant. It is served with lettuce, pickled vegetables, mint, thai basil, mustard greens, soaked vermicilli noodles and you then make up your own fresh rolls with all the ingredients wrapped in a fresh rice paper dipped in water. Serve vietnamese dipping sauce - recipes are available on zaar. Delicious!!!

• Ready In: 55 mins
• Serves: 4-6

Ingredients

• 1  egg white
• 2  teaspoons  vegetable oil
• 1⁄4 cup  chopped yellow onion, drained of excess water
• 3  shallots, minced
• 1  tablespoon fish sauce
• 1⁄4 teaspoon sea salt
• 1  tablespoon sugar
• 1  teaspoon  minced garlic
• 1⁄2 teaspoon white pepper
• 2  tablespoons cornstarch
• 1⁄2 teaspoon baking powder
• 500  g  medium raw shrimp, peeled, deviened and patted extremely dry
• 2  scallions, chopped
• 4  inches  long  sugar cane

Directions

1. Heat the oil in a small saucepan over moderate heat.
2. Add the onion and shallots and saute until slightly wilted, about 1 minute. Transfer onion mixture (not the juice) to a bowl and add the egg white, fish sauce, salt, sugar, garlic, white pepper, cornstarch and baking powder.
3. Add the shrimp and toss well.
4. Transfer the shrimp mixture to a food processor and process until almost smooth but still lumpy. Transfer the paste to a bowl, scraping the work bowl clean.
5. Stir in the scallions. (If the paste is not cold, refrigerate at this point to stiffen it.)
6. Quarter the sugarcane pieces lengthwise, or halve them if they're small. Wet your hands with cold water. Place 2 tablespoons of the shrimp paste in the middle of your palm. Place a piece of the sugarcane on top and mold the paste around it. (The paste should be about 1/4 inch thick and about 2 1/2 inches long).
7. Gently press the paste against the stick so that the edges are sealed. Set the shrimp stick aside on an oiled plate.
8. Repeat with the remaining sugarcane and paste.
9. Oil a steamer basket and place the sugarcane sticks in a single layer.
10. Steam until the shrimp paste turns pink, 2 to 3 minutes. You can make this dish in advance up to this point.
11. To finish, grill or broil the shrimp sticks until the paste is hot inside and slightly charred around the edges.
12. Serve immediately with accompaniments as described above.