The ultimate prawn cocktail

delicious. tips

1. The mayo: classic recipes for marie rose sauce call for homemade mayonnaise, but these days you can buy good quality stuff. We used Stokes Real Mayonnaise, available in larger supermarkets.
   The ketchup: you might not think of yourself as a red sauce person but it’s essential here – the tangy sweetness blends with the creamy mayo to perfection.
   Cayenne pepper over Tabasco: Tabasco is fantastic in many settings (particularly tomato salsa), but the cayenne here adds a smoky rather than
   fruity heat that cuts through the creaminess of the mayonnaise perfectly.
   The prawns: you need to buy the best quality. We used a mixture of the tiny North Atlantic prawns and meatier tiger/king prawns to add textural interest, but you can choose whatever prawns you like – just avoid the watery ones in plastic packs, and check they’re sustainable.

2. Make the sauce up to a day ahead and keep covered in the fridge. Stir the prawns into the sauce to serve

3. The forerunner of the prawn cocktail – with a punchier sauce – was invented in California in the 19th century. Later during Prohibition, the redundant cocktail glasses were put to use as a fancy receptacle for the popular dish.