Seafood cocktail platter
Assemble a seafood cocktail platter for a gathering. Everyone has their own idea of what makes a great prawn cocktail and here guests can create it themselves
- Preparation:
- Total:
- Serves: 6 persons
Ingredients
- 1fennel bulb
- 70g rocket
- 100g cherry tomatoes
- 2Little Gem lettuces
- 200g cooked prawns (choose a size that suits your budget – use prawns with the heads on, if possible)
- 100g white crabmeat
- extra seafood of your choice to add to the platter, such as lobster, smoked trout or extra-large prawns (optional)
- 1large ripe avocado, halved, peeled, stoned and sliced
- olive oil, for drizzling
- ½lemon, cut into 4 wedges, to serve
- 5tbsp mayonnaise
- 2tbsp ketchup
- ½lemon, juiced
- large splash of hot sauce or ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
Instructions
Step 1
To make the dressing, mix all the ingredients together in a small bowl with a small pinch of salt and set aside. Can be made up to two days ahead and chilled.Step 2
Trim the fronds from the fennel and set aside, then slice the bulb as finely as possible (use a mandoline if you have one). Tip the sliced fennel, the reserved fronds and the rocket into three separate bowls of iced water, and let stand while you quarter the tomatoes and shred the lettuce.Step 3
Drain the fennel and rocket well, then arrange the fennel and its fronds, the rocket, tomatoes, shredded lettuce, prawns, extra seafood and avocado in separate piles or in small bowls over a large serving platter or board, along with the bowl of sauce in the middle (or, decant it into a squeeze bottle). Serve with olive oil for drizzling and the lemon wedges for squeezing over. Provide glasses or small bowls for everyone to create their own prawn cocktail, and a large empty bowl for those who want to toss ingredients together.