It may sound a little unusual but cajun spiced prawns, white crab and a paprika spiced creamy cheese sauce with condensed milk, as extra indulgent touch, transform this Mac n cheese into somewhat of a showstopper dish.
Even better, you can get the dish pretty much prepped to be oven ready which makes it ideal for a dinner party - more time for drinking and chatting with the humans you haven't seen for the last year and less stressing in the kitchen!
I even go as far as using a disposable bbq metal trays here to minimise the washing up after! We've spent enough time cooking for one, now it's time to eat well and and enjoy hosting ;)
Serves 3-4
INGREDIENTS
CAJUN PRAWNS
- 400g uncooked prawns
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1-2 Tbsp cajun seasoning (I used this mix)
- Pinch of Salt
- Pinch of freshly ground black pepper
MAC
- 500g macaroni or similar type of pasta
- 400g uncooked prawns
- 2 tins of white crab meat (I got mine at Waitrose)
- ¼ cup dried basil
- 1 cup whole milk
- 2 cups lighter condensed milk
- 1 tsp Paprika
- ¼ tsp Cayenne Pepper
- Salt
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- 4 cups mature cheddar cheese, grated
- 2 cups mild cheddar cheese, grated
- 2 cups gouda cheese, grated
METHOD
- Heat a large frying pan over medium heat.
- In a medium bowl, add prawns, olive oil, cajun seasoning, and a pinch of salt and pepper and toss to combine and coat the prawns.
- Once frying pan is hot, add prawns and cook, stirring constantly until shrimp is pink, 4-6 minutes.
- Set aside.
- Preheat oven to 180C.
- Lightly butter a baking tray and set aside.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat.
- Add macaroni and cook until al dente (look at package directions to see how long it takes).
- Do not overcook.
- Drain well and transfer cooked pasta to a large bowl.
- Mix in Cajun shrimp, crab chunks and basil.
- Set aside.
- In a large bowl, add milk and evaporated milk and whisk to combine.
- Add paprika, cayenne, salt and pepper and whisk to combine.
- Taste the milk and adjust the seasonings to your liking.
- Once you're satisfied with the taste, add the eggs and beat until mixture is combined.
- Set aside 1 cup of the mature cheddar cheese and ½ cup of the gouda.
- Add the remaining cheese to the milk mixture and stir to combine.
- Pour cheese mixture into macaroni and stir to combine.
- Pour mixture into prepared baking tray.
- Top with reserved cheeses.
- Sprinkle more basil, paprika, salt, pepper and Cajun seasoning on top.
- Bake for 45-55 minutes or until top is golden.
- Remove from oven and let it sit for about 25-30 minutes to set before serving.
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