Vegan Bobó de Camarão

I love the memories of consistent home cooked meals with friends and family around. Growing up, this was more of a weekly event but later with my friends, I recall more of a monthly get together. What is especially on my mind is the times of hanging out with my Brazilian friends. One friend specifically, Janaina, did the cooking. Today she is a chef and it’s of no surprise to me. Her food was always amazing! I must have asked for the Bobó de Camarão so many times that I had no choice but to learn how to make it. I guess you will have to ask her for the non-vegan secrets but for now, I will share the recipe as I veganized it! This was a dish that I made in December for a work holiday party. 

Bobó de Camarão is a delicious Brazilian dish made with shrimp and a beautiful puree involving coconut milk. This dish is inspired from the region of Bahia, Brazil. There are probably a few different ways to make it and I’m confident that this way is up there among the best. 

This is the recipe how I made it using an extra large pot!

Ingredients
Shrimp– I used fake shrimp that actually resemble the real ones quite well except for the texture which may take a little getting used too. It’s vegan though!

Onions– 1 red onion
Scallions– 1 bunch
Garlic– 3 cloves

Tomatos– 3-4 medium sized
Bell peppers– 2- 4 colorful ones
Cilantro– 1 bunch
Water- about 4 cups but use your judgement
Tomato sauce– 1 or 2 cans
Coconut milk– 1 or 2 cans
Yucca– I use 1-2 frozen packages but you van use fresh too
Sazon con Azafran– 1-2 packets. I hear they have MSG free ones! 
Talisca– Azeite De Dente Talisca 1/5 bottle

• Begin with a sauté using the oil, garlic, onions and scallions.
• Add in the tomatoes and bell peppers, chopped and diced finely (and water to almost cover it)
• Add the Sazon, salt, pepper and cilantro
• Once this gets going I add in more water and really let that build flavor
• Next I use the canned tomato sauce.
• Later if I want it even thicker I may add a small can of paste. What’s interesting is watching the color and flavors of this puree as it changes and builds momentum.
• Once this has absorbed and cooked, I add in the coconut milk. I use between 1 and 2 cans depending on the flavor and how much I am making.
• Next I add the shrimp.I like the shrimp from MAY WAH. This VEGAN SHRIMP is a different taste for many, but certainly one that you can get used to that doesn’t harm shrimp or other fish caught from the shrimping industry; not to mention that they are bottom dwellers- so they are not the healthiest of the seafoods to begin with. Here are the ingredients: INGREDIENTS• Water • Konjac Powder • Beta Glucan • Modified Potato Starch • Paprika • Sugar • Sea Salt • Carrageenan • Alginate • Calcium Hyroxide 
• The yucca I cooked first in a separate pot. I blend it in a good food processor- this is where I had a problem. The yucca burnt out my Montel Health Master and yes I am mad about it. I had to resort to my regular and smaller food processors. This was not easy. Perhaps I needed more liquid or perhaps I just needed a new high end processor like the Vitamix that I got for Christmas. In any case, I added this yucca to the mix but was not able to achieve the floating masterpiece that she so eloquently and deliciously makes.

To recap the secrets: Work in steps, build the flavor, track down the Brazilian oil.. and then learn how to float the yucca on top like a dumpling! Have fun with it!

Thank you Janaina for inspiring me how to cook and thanks for the final tip- I needed to add more of the actual puree to my yucca mixture in the blender. I guess it’s not Montel’s fault after all. Just kidding, I always take responsibility for my cooking errors no matter how many!