Asparagus and Prawns with Egg Yolk and Vinegar Dressing is a delicate-looking dish with beautiful colour combinations. The dressing, Kimizu, is the Japanese version of mayonnaise or hollandaise sauce, but it does not contain oil at all.
It is a refreshing, versatile sauce for Japanese dishes. It keeps in an airtight container for about 1 week in the fridge.
Don't forget to see the section 'MEAL IDEAS' below the recipe card! It gives you a list of dishes that I have already posted and this recipe that can make up a complete meal. I hope it is of help to you.
- 4 stalks asparagus
- 4 raw prawns (medium size, note 1)
- 1 tbsp cooking sake
- 2 tbsp water
- 1 egg yolk (note 2)
- 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar (note 3)
- 1 tbsp mirin
- ½ tbsp dashi stock (note 4)
- 1 tsp sugar
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp light soy sauce (optional)
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Remove the hard part of the asparagus stems at lower end.
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Boil water in a saucepan, add a pinch of salt and par boil asparagus for 30 seconds to 1 minute. Drain.
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Cut the asparagus stems into 3-4cm/1⅛-1 9⁄16” long pieces.
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Remove the head of the prawns and de-vein (note 5).
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Put prawns, sake and water into a pot and steam the prawns for 3-4 minutes over medium heat with a lid on. Let them cool and peel the shell.
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Halve each prawn perpendicular to the spine (note 1).
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Put the egg yolk in a heat proof glass bowl (preferred) or a metal bowl and mix well with a spatula.
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Add sugar to the bowl and quickly mix well. Then add salt and mirin to the bowl. Mix well ensuring that the mixture is smooth with no lumps (note 6).
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Add vinegar and mix well.
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Put water in a shallow pot or a saucepan that can fit the bowl inside and bring it to a boil. The depth of the water should be about 5cm/2” deep (note 7).
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Reduce the heat to the lowest so that the water does not even simmer, then place the bowl inside the pot/pan (note 8).
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Mix the kimizu mixture gently with the spatula for 4-5 minutes. As the yolk is heated up, the mixture starts getting thicker.
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When the yolk becomes creamy but still runny, transfer the bowl from the water bath to a bowl with ice water and continue to mix. The sauce will thicken to the consistency of slightly runny mayonnaise.
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Put the asparagus and the prawns on a serving bowl, clustering each ingredient together.
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Pour the kimizu over the asparagus and prawns. It will look nice if you cover part of these ingredients with kimizu (see the photo).
1. I used tiger prawns so I would have vivid red stripes on the cooked prawns. But any species of prawns are OK.
If your prawns are small, you can increase the number of prawns to 6 or 8 and serve without halving them.
You could use cooked prawns from the fish shop, but these prawns tend to be overcooked and slightly salty, which overpowers the delicate taste of the sauce.
2. My egg weighed 54g/1.9oz in shell and the yolk was about 12g/0.4oz. If your egg yolk is much larger (say, more than 25% heavier), you need to increase the quantity of other ingredients accordingly.
3. You can use apple cider vinegar as an alternative.
4. I used konbu dashi because the colour of the dashi stock is almost transparent. Dashi stock made from bonito flakes is yellow brown and it makes the colour of the kimizu not as vivid as the sauce with konbu dashi.
5. By gently pulling the head, the vein usually comes out naturally. If not, pinch the end of the vein sticking out of the flesh and gently pull it out.
If these methods fail, you can use a toothpick and pierce it into the soft flesh between the shell segments, then lift the vein with the toothpick to pull it out.
6. Yolk coagulates when sugar is added, so it is important not to leave the yolk and sugar without mixing them.
If the mixture has tiny, coagulated bits on the surface, don’t worry. You can put the kimizu through a sieve after the sauce is thickened at the end of making kimizu.
7. When you place the bowl, the water level should be above the surface of the kimizu mixture.
8. If you are using a metal bowl, turn the heat off and place a kitchen towel in the pot/pan and place the bowl on it. This is to prevent the bowl from getting hot too quickly.
9. It keeps in an airtight container for about 1 week in the fridge. Seal the surface of the kimizu with a piece of cling wrap with no air bubble to prevent the kimizu from drying out on the surface.
10. Nutrition per serving.
serving: 75g calories: 65kcal fat: 1.8g (2%) saturated fat: 0.6g (3%) trans fat: 0.0g polyunsaturated fat: 0.3g monounsaturated fat: 0.7g cholesterol: 80mg (27%) sodium: 363mg (16%) carbohydrates: 7.2g (3%) dietary fibre: 0.7g (2%) sugar: 6g protein: 3.3g vitamin D: 0mcg (2%) calcium: 23mg (2%) iron: 0.9mg (5%) potassium: 86.6 mg (2%)
Nutrition per serving (Kimizu only)
serving: 27g calories: 47kcal fat: 1.6g (2%) saturated fat: 0.6g (3%) trans fat: 0.0g polyunsaturated fat: 0.3g monounsaturated fat: 0.7g cholesterol: 65mg (22%) sodium: 294mg (13%) carbohydrates: 5.8g (2%) dietary fibre: 0g (0%) sugar: 5.4g protein: 1g vitamin D: 0mcg (2%) calcium: 9mg (1%) iron: 0.2mg (1%) potassium: 7.9mg (0%)