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Prawns are really useful to keep in the freezer for emergencies – they can be cooked in a blink and in myriad ways, helping you to make a meal out of simple ingredients in minutes. Traditionally in Iran, you eat seafood only if you live near the sea. My grandma used to call prawns joonevar (Farsi for ‘insects’) because of their appearance when whole, and would never eat them, but I love them in all their shapes and sizes. They always make a dish feel special. I love eating this dish with rice, but you can serve it with bread or any grain you like.

Serves 4

vegetable oil
2 large onions, thinly sliced into half moons
7.5cm piece of fresh root ginger, peeled and cut into matchsticks
1 large garlic bulb, cloves peeled and roughly sliced
3–4 lime leaves, rolled and thinly sliced into ribbons
6 red pickled chillies, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
4 cardamom pods, lightly crushed
2 teaspoons turmeric
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
400–600g raw tiger prawns, peeled but with tails left on
6 preserved lemons, halved, deseeded and sliced into half moons
½ cucumber, peeled, halved lengthways, deseeded and cut into 1cm slices
50g fresh coriander, leaves and stems roughly chopped
sea salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper

If you have a wok, heat it over a high heat. Otherwise, heat a large saucepan over a high heat. Pour a generous amount of oil into the pan and, once it is hot, fry the onions, stirring only occasionally to prevent burning, until golden brown and crispy. Then, working quickly, add the ginger, garlic, lime leaves, chilli and the spices and keep stirring the mixture to prevent burning. Now add the prawns and coat them in the mixture well. Stir-fry for 1 minute (or more, if they are large), then add the preserved lemons and stir-fry for about 1 minute more or so or until some of the juices have
evaporated. Add the cucumber slices, stir and, finally, add the chopped coriander. Stir-fry the mixture for 2 minutes until the prawns turn pink and are cooked through, then serve immediately.