Serves 2

Ingredients

1 egg

100g/3.5 oz potato flour groundnut oil

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8 large raw tiger prawns, shelled with head off, tail on, and deveined

steamed jasmine rice to serve

For the herby sauce

2 garlic cloves, crushed

1 medium green chilli, deseeded and roughly chopped

1 large handful of fresh

coriander, leaves and stalks 4 large broccoli florets

2 pinches of sea salt

1 tablespoon Longjing tea leaves or other green tea leaves

For the crispy tea leaves

1 tablespoon groundnut oil

2 tablespoons Longjing tea

leaves or other green tea leaves

Method

1 Put the egg and potato flour into a bowl and mix well to form a batter.

2 Heat a wok or pan over a high heat and fill to a quarter of its depth with groundnut oil. Heat the oil to 180°C/350°F, or until a cube of bread dropped in turns golden brown in 15 seconds.

3 Dip the prawns in the batter one by one and lower them into the oil. Cook the prawns until they turn golden, then remove from the oil and drain on absorbent kitchen paper.

4 Place all the ingredients for the herby sauce in a container suitable for use with a hand stick blender and blend well.

5 Drain the wok of oil, wipe clean with absorbent kitchen paper and return the wok to the heat. Add the sauce and bring to the bubble, then take off the heat.

6 To make the crispy tea leaves, heat the groundnut oil in a small pan over a high heat, add the tea leaves and lightly fry until they are crisp. Remove from the pan and drain on absorbent kitchen paper.

7 Place the prawns on a serving plate, pour the hot sauce over them, sprinkle with the crispy tea leaves and serve immediately with steamed rice. Alternatively, serve the sauce as a dipping sauce for the prawns.

It has been around for centuries and there is nothing more traditional in Chinese cooking than using the wok. This great invention has been used to help feed millions of people all over the world.

Woks come in various sizes and are made from different materials, and so it can be challenging knowing which to choose. Traditional cast iron woks are quite heavy and they require seasoning, which is not too difficult. The wok comes coated with a film of oil; wash this off using a sponge and washing up liquid, then dry the wok by placing it over a high flame on the stove.

Next, add a little oil (sesame oil is good because it burns quickly) and then use kitchen towel (hold with a pair of tongs if you wish) to rub in the oil over the entire wok, giving it a darkened blackened effect. Once your wok is seasoned, don’t use a metal scourer or iron wool on it, as you will take off the seasoning.

If you have never tried this before, and you are a keen cook, I would recommend it – there is real pleasure in releasing the ‘Wok-hei’ or ‘smoky’ flavour when using a traditional wok.

For those who prefer a lighter wok, I would highly recommend one made from carbon steel (especially for ladies) and you would season it in the same way as a traditional cast iron wok. If you are short of time, like me, buy a non-stick wok made from carbon steel, which is just as good.

I prefer a one-handled wok with a medium handle that is not too thick to hold. When choosing your wok, make sure it feels comfortable and right for you. In terms of size, go for a medium one between 30.5cm/12 inches and 40.5cm/16 inches in diameter that will hold a medium-sized bamboo steamer quite comfortably and allow you to cook up a decent portion to serve at least four.

For those who don’t have a gas stove, I would say invest in a new cooker! I find that electric stoves are just not right for wok cooking – sure, you can buy the flat-bottomed wok, but you never really get enough heat to cook the food.You could invest in a good electric wok, which I have used before and found not too bad; these are also good for making hotpots – Chinese-style fondue.

Chinese Food Made Easy starts on BBC Two on July 7. The book Chinese Food Made Easy, by Ching-He Huang (Harper Collins, £16.99), is available at £15.29, free p&p. Phone 0870 1608080; timesonline.co.uk/booksfirstbuy

For more information on Ching visit her website

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