This is a sponsored post for Woolworths.
If you’re in Australia you might have seen the fun {and funny} new ads from Woolies. If you haven’t check out The Prawn Whisperer here. This year, Woolies is sharing the different ways Aussies spend their Christmases.
One thing on my bucket list is to have a white Christmas. I can imagine it would be nice to be all rugged up on Christmas Day, snow falling outside, spending the day by the fire with a warm meal for dinner. Doesn’t it sound magical?
The reality in Australia each Christmas is quite different. It’s always really hot, there’s no rugging up – just lovely, bright sundresses and preferably a swim at some point in the day. As kids we were lucky enough to have a nice swimming pool {half above ground, half below ground – so fancy!} and we’d open our presents and then head to pool, only resurfacing for food and sweets. And more presents as extended family dropped by.
My Ma always made the effort to make a hot lunch for Christmas. It included a roast, with vegetables and all the trimmings. It was always so hot in the kitchen as she got it all done, and it was delicious too. But we’ve kinda come to our senses and mixed it up a little bit now. We’ll have some hot {last year it was pork belly} and some cold {salads and seafood}. And there are always prawns. Always.
It’s only this year that I’ve really tried prawns. Hubby is so impressed, I can’t even begin to explain. These salt and pepper prawns were the BUSINESS. I thought they were spicy {deliciously spicy at that}, but Lacey didn’t even bat an eyelid. When I asked her if she thought they were spicy, she shook her head and kept munching. I got this yummy prawn recipe from the Woolworths site, here.
Ingredients
2 tbs olive oil
2 tsp salt flakes
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 tsp Szechaun seasoning
750g Australian banana or king prawns, heads removed, peeled & de-veined, tails attached
Soy sauce, chilli and lime wedges to serve
Method
♥ Combine oil, salt, pepper, garlic & Szechaun seasoning in a bowl. Add prawns and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate for an hour.
♥ Thread prawns onto skewers, lengthways {as you can see in the pictures above}. Heat a BBQ or frying pan to medium heat. Cook prawns 2-3 minutes on each side until cooked through. Serve with the soy sauce and lime wedges.
Note: You can use either green Australian banana or Australian king prawns. When I went to the seafood department at Woolies, they had both – but Hubby informed me that banana would be best. I’m such a prawn newbie that I just do as I’m told!
Check out other delicious prawn recipes {as well as ideas for Christmas} here.
How do you spend Christmas Day? Do you eat a hot meal? And do you ever indulge in a swim?
If you’d like to read more about sponsored posts, please check out my disclosure policy here.
Thank you so much for this! I’m planning prawns for Christmas night even though I had no idea how to do them. I wasn’t even sure if I was supposed to use green ones or the pre-cooked ones! Prawn newbie as well here. Anyway, this is just perfect. Can’t wait to try them out.
I’m such a prawn newbie too, but these were easy and so yummy. x
I love prawns! They are the best! Xmas without prawns is unheard of! Noms noms noms
I love Salt & Pepper Prawns!!
We always have prawns on Christmas Day – even Little Miss 4 loves them.
I love salt & pepper squid. One of my favourite foods. Ever. 🙂
YUM. Hubby’s family do a very traditional English-style Christmas dinner, and I spend all day wishing we were eating prawns. They look delish!
Sneak in some prawns. Go on. 😛
Love reading about your Christmas traditions and food. Here in Southern California, our Christmases aren’t white, but they definitely aren’t spent in the pool! Typically Christmas Eve is spent at my parent’s house where the meal is tamales. Christmas morning is spent in my house with assorted pancakes and fixings for the whole family followed by a massive paper fight…. Can’t wait!
That sounds delicious!
I grew up on the Gold Coast, but lived in the US for 11 years, and winter Christmas just “feels right”. Blame the movies/TV shows maybe? There is nothing quite like a white Christmas. On the other hand, it’s nice to have our xmas tradition of a bbq breakfast at the beach, swimming, then late lunch/early dinner & presents and you don’t have to have 10 layers of clothing on. I have never tried prawns. Maybe I should give them a go this year?
Oh thank you Chantelle, this sounds mouth watering! I’m going to try it this weekend! Do you use powder or paste Szechaun seasoning?
I always hope we have a white Christmas, most years we do, but there’s always the possibility of a “black Christmas” living on the south coast of Finland (probably the only thing “black” that I don’t like 😀 ). We’re also usually celebrating everything on “the eve” of holidays in Finland, so Christmas Eve is the day for gifts and family dinner here. We have traditional hot foods, such as rice porridge, potato and carrot casseroles, as well as cold cuts (meat and fish) every year. Mustard covered Christmas ham is a must have, and cooked and salted beef tongue is my family’s own traditional delicacy (I know it sounds just awful, but it’s really nice, really!). And my mom makes the best pickled chanterelles for Christmas! When I was a kid, we used to go “snow swimming” from sauna during winter, also on Christmas, but I don’t think I would anymore.
Powder. x
Now that is a Christmas I’d love to experience. The food sounds absolutely delicious! I haven’t had salted beef tongue in years! I wonder how you make it in Finland?
My mum does the most amazing turkey and we do have brussels sprouts and roast potatoes with pigs in blankets and all the trimmings for Christmas. Last year I asked her to let me help with the turkey, but I didn’t get up early enough. By the time I got over there, she’d already bunged it in the oven. Boohoo!
Your prawns look delicious. I’ve never heard of banana prawns. Are they bigger or smaller than tigers? I love the idea of the Australian Christmas although, even though I don’t remember ever having had a white Christmas, I’d miss the cold European one with all its aromas like mulled wine and candles.
I do have a great Aussie friend in Europe though, who insists on getting her shorts on whilst she’s opening her presents at Christmas. I always thought that was a lovely idea 🙂
Oh, and it’s lovely to know that Woollies is doing well in Oz. Is is more of a supermarket over there though? Here it was always famous for its penny sweets and cheap lined paper 🙂
In Australia we have two major supermarkets – Woolies and Coles. They’re really big and popular here. I didn’t know they were elsewhere in the world.
Oh gosh, I really don’t know prawns. Let me ask Shane when he wakes up. 🙂
We generally have cold meats and salads – an enormous range including seafood. When I was young we had a pool and missed it so much when it was gone. Thankfully, my wonderful husband is building us one and it will be ready for Xmas. So the pool, seafood and champa’s here we come 🙂
Mum has always done the roast with all the trimmings then in the evening we have cold meat with salad and seafood. When I lived in the UK I had a winter Christmas, it was more of a slushy wet Christmas than a white one, but it felt right to be rugged up and unwrapping gifts by the fire. The only thing missing was my family. when Sadie is a bit older a white Christmas is on our family to do list
They look delish! Bookmarking for christmas.
A white Christmas has always been on my list. The year after we moved back to Oz from Raleigh, North Carolina, they had a White Christmas!!! And they rarely ever do. That was a little mean I thought.