Fuel My Friday: Hext's Prawn and Chilli Tagliatelle

Double London 2019 world championship medallist, Suzanna Hext, battled through adversity to finish fourth in two finals at her debut Paralympics last summer. And following a 'life changing' surgery in which a cochlear implant was fitted successfully in her right ear at the end of 2021, Hext is back in the water and building up for a return to competition.

Ahead of February's Para Swimming World Series event in Aberdeen, we asked for one of the dishes she uses to fuel her big training days in the pool and gym. Over to you, Suzanna...

I do this recipe quite a lot as it's really quick and tasty, and most importantly it doesn't create too much washing up!

Ingredients

• 150g dried tagliatelle
• 150g tenderstem broccoli
• 1/2 tbsp coconut oil
• 6 spring onions
• 1 tsp chilli flakes
• 8 cherry tomatoes
• 1 garlic clove
• 480g peeled raw king prawns
• Salt and pepper
• Splash of lemon juice

Method

1. Firstly bring a large saucepan of water up to the boil, adding in a pinch of salt with the tagliatelle and cook according to pack instructions (normally about 10-12 minutes). Drop the tenderstem broccoli into the pan just over a minute before the pasta is cooked, and then drain together in a colander.
2. Meanwhile finely slice the spring onions, halve the cherry tomatoes and crush the garlic clove (or finely chop if you don't have a garlic press). Melt the coconut oil in a frying pan over a medium to high heat and then proceed to stir-fry together with the chilli flakes for 2 minutes or until the tomatoes are beginning to soften.
3. Toss in the prawns into the stir-fry and continue to cook together for 2 minutes, ensuring they have changed to a deep pink colour to indicate they're cooked through.
4. When satisfied the prawns are cooked, turn off the heat and add the broccoli tagliatelle into the frying pan and mix through with a good seasoning of salt and pepper.
5. Serve up across two plates, finishing with a splash of lemon juice and enjoy!  

Check out our athletes' diverse range of recipe options across on the Fuel My Friday page HERE