Plump shrimp swimming in a velvety, golden cream of puréed cassava, coconut milk, and dendê oil, spiced with ginger and cilantro — Bahia's most luxurious shrimp dish.
Ingredients
800g shrimp, peeled and deveined
500g cassava (mandioca), peeled and cubed
400ml coconut milk
3 tbsp dendê oil
1 large onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tomatoes, diced
1 piece fresh ginger, grated
1 bunch cilantro, chopped
Juice of 1 lime
Salt and black pepper
1 red bell pepper, diced
Instructions
1Boil cassava cubes in salted water for 20-25 minutes until very tender. Drain, reserving 1 cup cooking liquid.
2Blend cooked cassava with coconut milk and reserved cooking liquid until silky smooth.
3Sauté onion, garlic, and ginger in dendê oil until fragrant. Add tomatoes and bell pepper, cook 5 minutes.
4Pour the cassava-coconut cream into the pot and stir well. Simmer for 10 minutes until thick.
5Add shrimp and cook for 5-7 minutes until pink and curled.
6Finish with lime juice and cilantro. Adjust salt and pepper.
7Serve over white rice with extra dendê oil drizzled on top.
Did You Know?
Bobó comes from the Yoruba word "ibobó" meaning a paste of beans or yams, revealing the dish's direct connection to West African cuisine brought by enslaved peoples.