Steamed Garlic Butterfly Shrimp/Prawns with Vermicelli

Gather all the ingredients. Immerse the Korean vermicelli/sweet potato noodles in hot water to soften them up for 20 minutes while you prepare for the rest of the dish.

Clean up the shrimp. Wash the shrimp gently and pat them dry with kitchen paper towel. Use kitchen scissors to remove the shrimp’s antenna and legs. Then cut the rostrum (the pointed sharp part on shrimp’s head). Insert a toothpick into the cut where the rostrum used to sit and take out a small black chip (the black chip is shrimp’s stomach and it is connected to the vein all the way through the back). Be careful not to disturb the hepatopancreas, which is the orange/tan color inside the head. Insert the same toothpick into the gap between 2nd and 3rd tail section from the end to remove the shrimp’s vein.

Butterfly the shrimp. Use kitchen scissors to cut open the back shell of the shrimp. Then carefully run a chef’s knife through the back to deepen the cut. Gently open the shrimp and use the back of a chef’s knife or cleaver to lightly tap the flesh so it stays flat. (If you did not de-vein in step 2, you can do it here after cutting the back open. The vein is located either on the left or right side of the flesh where the incision is made).

Smash the garlic cloves with a cleaver to quickly remove the skins. Using two hands, gently rock the chef’s knife back and forth across the pile of garlic to mince it.

Prepare the sauce by adding the 2 tablespoons of light soy sauce, 2 teaspoons of sugar, ½ teaspoon kosher salt (or ¼ teaspoon table salt), ¼ teaspoon white pepper powder (optional), and 2 tablespoons of water in a small bowl. Mix well.

Heat the 2 tablespoons of oil over medium-high heat. When the oil just starts to get hot, add the minced garlic. Stir and toss frequently to prevent garlic from sticking. After about 1 minute when garlic becomes golden and fragrant, add the sauce and let it boil before turning off the heat.

Lay the softened Korean vermicelli in a circle on a plate. Then lay the butterflied shell-on shrimp one by one like flower petals with tails in the center and head towards outside.

Carefully add the sauce along with cooked garlic on top of each butterflied shrimp and vermicelli.

Boil some water in a steamer or a large wok with steamer rack. When the water boils, transfer the plated shrimp on top of the steamer rack. Cover the lid and steam for 4 minutes over medium-high heat.

When the time is up, turn off the heat immediately. Carefully take the plate out and add the chopped green onions onto the shrimp. Heat the additional tablespoon of vegetable oil. When the oil is very hot but not smoking, pour it over the green onions.