The prawn cracker is a form of deep fried snack made from starch and prawn. Prawn crackers are a common snack food in Southeast Asian cuisine, but they are most closely associated with Indonesia and Malaysia in the west. They have also been adapted into East Asian cuisines. Similar foods include also Kappa Ebisen and :ko:새우깡|Saeukkang, which are a popular snack in both countries.
Preparation
Prawn crackers are made by mixing prawns, tapioca flour and water. The mixture is rolled out, steamed, and sliced. Traditionally, to achieve maximum crispiness, raw crackers are usually sun-dried first before frying, to eliminate the moisture. Once dry, they are deep-fried in oil. In only a few seconds they expand from thumb-sized semi-transparent wafers to white fluffy crackers, much like popcorn, as water bound to the starch expands as it turns into steam. If left in the open air for more than a few hours, they start to soften and become chewy and are therefore ideally consumed within a few hours of being fried. Storing the crackers in a low humidity environment or an airtight container will preserve the crispness. Prawn crackers of premium quality are aromatic even without additives such as monosodium glutamate and artificial prawn flavourings to enhance the smell and taste. The fried prawn crackers may be stored in airtight container for up to 3 months without preservatives and up to 9 months or so depending on the amount of preservatives added. Most varieties of prawn crackers can also be prepared in a microwave oven, in which a few discs can be cooked in less than a minute. This will usually cause them to cook and expand in a way similar to when they are deep fried. For small quantities, this method is faster and less messy, as the crackers do not become as oily. However, this may cause the cracker to retain a stronger aroma of raw shrimp and the cracker has to be consumed within hours before it softens and loses its crispness.
Retail
Packets of unfried prawn crackers may be purchased in east and southeast Asian groceries. In the Netherlands, Belgium, Suriname, France, Australia, South Africa and the United Kingdom, they are also widely available in general supermarkets. In the United Kingdom and Australia they are often given free of charge alongside take-away east or southeast Asian food orders.
Variations
Southeast Asia
Prawn cracker is called krupuk udang in Indonesian, and is merely one variant of many sorts of krupuk recognised in Indonesian cuisine. In Indonesia the term krupuk or kerupuk is used as umbrella term to refer to this kind of cracker. Indonesia has perhaps the largest variety of krupuk. Krupuk udang and other types of krupuk are ubiquitous in Indonesia. Examples of popular krupuk udang brands in Indonesia include Finna and Komodo brand. To achieve maximum crunchiness, most of this pre-packed raw krupuk udang must be sun-dried first before being deep fried at home. To cook krupuk, a wok and plenty of very hot cooking oil is needed. Raw krupuk is quite small, hard, and darker in color than cooked one. Fishing towns of Sidoarjo in East Java, also Cirebon in West Java, are major producers of krupuk udang. Prawn crackers are known as keropok in Malaysia. They are one of the most popular snacks in Malaysia and are particularly served at homes of many during festive celebrations. Prawn crackers are known as kropek in the Philippines, or by their English names "prawn crackers" or "fish crackers". They are traditionally made from flour, powdered prawns or fish, various spices, and water. Unlike in Malaysia and Indonesia, kropek is typically only eaten as a snack or as appetizers accompanying alcohol, similar to chicharon. They are typically dipped in spicy vinegar-based sauces, most notably sinamak. Kropek have also been assimilated into Filipino Chinese cuisine, often being served as a side dish to some Chinese Filipino dishes. Sa Đéc in southern Vietnam is the home of bánh phồng tôm. The traditional snack is made of ground shrimp, sometimes mixed with cuttlefish, arrowroot flour, tapioca flour, onion, garlic, sugar, fish sauce, cracked black pepper and salt. Traditionally the dough is steamed, rolled out, cut into round chips then dried. Another method is to form rolls, steam and then slice into thin rounds before being dried. Modern production favours the oval shapes such that the chips form a "scooper" as an accompaniment to salads. The brand Sa Giang is well known. A variant is bánh phồng nấm flavoured with nấm hương or nấm rơm.
In Chinese cuisine, prawn crackers may use food colouring, and tend to be lighter and non-spicy. However, in China they are easy to find in supermarkets, yet not popular or common in restaurants or when serving food for friends. Prawn crackers are considered a snack food, but may accompany takeaway Chinese food in Australia, Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain, the United Kingdom, and Ireland. Shrimp chips are usually served with roasted chicken dishes in Chinese restaurants overseas.
The Netherlands
Through their historical colonial ties with Indonesia, the Dutch are familiar with Indonesian foodstuffs including the Indonesian prawn crackers. Assorted types of krupuk, deep fried crackers made from starch and flavourings, such as prawn or crab, are available in many Indische, or Indo, shops in the Netherlands, which locally are called toko. Prawn crackers are also available in many of the major supermarkets. Kroepoek is a standard part of the repertoire of "Indische" restaurants in the Netherlands. It is also served in Chinese restaurants in Belgium and in the Netherlands.
