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This recipe is adapted from Bobo de Camarao by Gloria Sarcinelli of Moqueca Brazilian Cuisine in Oxnard and Thousand Oaks. Editor’s note: To make this dish when fresh tomatoes aren’t in season, use a 28-ounce can of diced tomatoes. Drain canned tomatoes, reserving the juice. When adding the canned tomatoes to the recipe, include about ¼ cup of the reserved juice.
Ingredients
SERVINGS: 6 Serving(s)
- 2 pounds yucca root* peeled
- ⅔ cup coconut milk (can used reduced-fat coconut milk)
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 2 medium yellow onions, chopped
- 1 tablespoon ground urucum (AKA annatto/achiote, this deep-red seed is available at Latin grocers.)
- 3 large tomatoes, chopped
- 1 bunch cilantro, chopped (about 1 cup)
- ¼ cup fresh lime juice
- 2 pounds medium or large shrimp, preferably U.S. farm-raised or wild (peeled and deveined)
- 1 teaspoon dendê oil* or palm oil (can also use peanut oil)
- Lime wedges for garnish
Preparation
1. Preparing the yucca: Cut yucca into very large chunks. Boil or steam yucca until soft, about 30 minutes, or until a fork can pierce yucca. Drain yucca; remove hard fibers at the core. (An easy way to do this is to mash the yucca with a fork as you would for mashed potatoes. The fibers will be easy to pick out from mashed yucca.) Process it in a food processor with coconut milk. Add more coconut milk, if needed, so the mixture becomes the consistency of heavy cream.
2. In a clay pot or stove-top Dutch oven, add olive oil, garlic, salt and onions and cook for 2 minutes over medium heat. Stir so garlic doesn’t burn.
3. Add urucum, tomatoes, cilantro and lime juice. Stir until sauce is thick and rich. Add shrimp and cook for 7–8 minutes, or until done. Stir in yucca mixture and dendê oil. Thin with additional coconut milk, as needed, so the dish has the consistency of a thick soup.
4. Ladle into single-serving bowls and serve with lime wedges.
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