Fried prawn

Fried prawn (海老フライ or エビフライ, ebi furai^?) is a deep fried dish popular in Japan as well as Japanese restaurants worldwide. It is a speciality of the city of Nagoya.

A popular ingredient of Japanese bento, Fried Prawn Bentō (海老フライ弁当 or エビフライ弁当, ebi furai^?) is a common menu item at bentō shops.

Traditionally Kuruma Ebi was used, but since a decline in its cultivation, many stores have started using black tiger shrimp and Ise Ebi. It is thought that ebi furai was created around 1900 in response to the growing popularity of similar dishes such as Tonkatsu and minced meat cutlets in the Western food restaurants of Ginza and Tokyo.

Each prawn is straightened out flat, and a small incision made along its back. The gritty tasting digestive tract is then pulled out of this incision.

The prawn is then coated with flour, beaten egg and japanese breadcrumbs Panko in that order, and deep-fried in hot cooking oil.

The head is usually removed before cooking. However, if the prawn is fresh enough, it may be cooked and served whole. Some people prefer to eat the head, which becomes crispy.

Fried prawns are often eaten with a choice of thick Worcester sauce, Hoisin sauce, lemon juice or tartare sauce.

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Wikipedia