This irresistibly creamy garlic prawn dip, served in a golden, toasted cob loaf, is the stuff of party-food dreams. It serves 12 and is the life of any party or gathering.
How to make a creamy garlic prawn cob loaf dip: key tips
We start by creating a simple, herby garlic butter before carving out the cob loaf (see Step 3) to make the ideal serving bowl for our super-flavourful dip. When it comes to the filling, alternating the creamy cheese mixture with the prawns in three layers ensures every scoop has the perfect prawn-to-dip ratio. You can remove the prawn tails if you choose.
Hot tip: Grab an extra French stick or baguette at the supermarket to have on hand in case you need more bread for this oozy, cheesy, garlicky dip.
What goes into our creamy garlic prawn cob loaf
The garlic butter does double duty: it flavours the prawns, seasons the bread shell, and enriches the cream cheese base. Parsley goes into the butter and the filling, while chives add a final fresh pop. And these layered herb flavours create more depth than a single addition. The edible bread bowl (the cob loaf itself) means less washing-up and more "wow factor" when you bring it to the table. We use green king prawns – using raw prawns means they cook in that glorious garlic butter, absorbing all those flavours. You can use fresh prawns from the fishmonger, but frozen peeled green prawns are readily available at the supermarket and work really well in this recipe. Sour cream provides that luscious dip texture, and the cheese trio – cream cheese, tasty cheese and grated parmesan – creates complexity. Tasty cheese is for sharpness, parmesan for umami depth, and cream cheese for luxurious smoothness. Each brings something different to the party. The result? One harmoniously delicious combination of flavours in a bread vessel.
Love this recipe idea? Check out more of our favourite cob loaf recipes.
Recipe and photography by Greer Worsley
Ingredients
- 1 cob loaf
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 125g butter, softened
- 3 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 tbsp chopped parsley
- 500g peeled green king prawns with tails
- 250g cream cheese, softened
- 300g light sour cream
- 1 cup grated tasty cheese
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan
- 1/3 cup chopped parsley, extra
- 2 tbsp finely chopped chives
Method
-
Step 1Preheat oven to 200°C/180°C fan-forced.
-
Step 2Use a small sharp pointed knife to cut a ‘lid’ off the cob loaf. Pull the soft bread out to form a hollow, and tear it and the lid into bite-size pieces. Place the torn bread on an oven tray and toss in olive oil. Bake for 10-15 minutes until golden and toasted.
-
Step 3In a small bowl, combine butter, garlic and parsley, then season. Heat garlic butter in a frypan over medium heat for 1-2 minutes or until fragrant. Remove from heat. Brush some of the garlic butter liberally all over the inside and outside of the hollowed out cob loaf. Pour melted garlic butter into a large bowl, leaving 2 tbsp in the frypan. Add prawns to the frying pan and cook for 2-3 minutes or until they change colour and are just cooked through. Set aside.
-
Step 4Add the cream cheese and sour cream to the large bowl with the garlic butter. Mix until smooth. Fold through the cheeses, extra parsley and 3/4 of the chives. Spoon one-third of the cheese mixture into the bottom of the cob loaf. Distribute one-third of the cooked prawns on top. Add another third of the cheese mixture and another third of the prawns. Finish with remaining cheese mixture, and reserve the remaining prawns
-
Step 5Wrap the cob loaf in a large piece of foil lined with baking paper. Place on an oven tray and bake for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and peel the foil back from the top of the cob loaf. Arrange the reserved prawns along with any extra garlic butter in the pan on top of the cob loaf. Return to the oven and bake, uncovered, for 10-15 minutes or until heated through.
-
Step 6Serve the cob loaf warm garnished with remaining chives, with toasted torn bread pieces for dipping.
Recipe Reviews
JOIN THE CONVERSATION
Log in Register