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Ensopado de Camarao (Brazilian Shrimp Stew)
Ensopado de Camarao (Brazilian Shrimp Stew)
Shrimp stew is a popular Brazilian dish eaten during holidays and celebrations. The stew base is of shrimp stock, coconut milk, and sautéed onions, peppers, garlic, and tomatoes; all puréed smooth. Sautéed shrimp are added to the stew along with lime juice and cilantro. The shrimp stew is always served over rice.
Servings: 8
Equipment
- blender
Ingredients
Shrimp Stock
- 3 cups water
- 2 cups shrimp shells
Shrimp Stew
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 2 lbs 21/25 ct. shrimp peeled and deveined
- 1 medium white onion chopped
- 1 green bell pepper chopped
- 10 garlic cloves
- 2 roma tomatoes chopped
- 1 1/2 cups coconut milk
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1/2 lime juiced
Garnish
- cilantro chopped
Instructions
- Bring the water to a boil with the shrimp shells. Reduce to half the amount; about 1 1/2 cups.
- Strain and set aside.
- In the same pot, heat up 2 tbsp of olive oil over medium high heat. Sauté the shrimp for 3 minutes.
- Set aside.
- In the same pot again, heat up the rest of the olive oil over medium high heat. Sauté the onions and peppers for 5 minutes.
- Toss in the whole garlic cloves. Sauté for 2 minutes. Add in the tomatoes and sauté for 3 more minutes.
- Add the sautéed vegetables to a blender along with the shrimp stock and coconut milk. Purée until smooth.
- Pour the purée back into the pot. Simmer for 10 minutes over medium heat.
- Stir in the shrimp. Cook for 2 more minutes.
- Turn off the heat. Squeeze in the lime juice. Garnish with cilantro.
Mango Chicken Curry
Mango Chicken Curry
This is a great first dish to try as an intro to Somali cuisine. A simple mango curry sauce is made from simmering coconut milk, curry powder, cumin, brown sugar, and mango pulp to a thick curry sauce. In a separate pan, you make a chicken stir fry with pretty much any vegetables you want. I used snap peas and red bell peppers. Carrots, broccoli, and zucchini would work as well. The serrano peppers are used to bite into if you want some spice. Then you add chopped mango and the curry sauce and simmer for a couple more minutes. You can serve the mango chicken curry with basmati rice and more mango.
Servings: 4
Ingredients
Mango Curry Sauce
- 1 cup coconut milk
- 1 tsp African curry powder
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp brown sugar
- 1 cup mango pulp
Chicken Stir Fry
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 6 boneless skinless chicken thighs cubed
- 1/2 medium red onion sliced
- 5 garlic cloves munded
- 1 cup sugar snap peas
- 1 medium red bell pepper sliced
- 1/4 cup white onion finely chopped
- 4 serrano chilies
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp crushed red pepper
- 1 mango peeled and cubed
Garnish
- cilantro chopped
Instructions
- Bring the coconut milk to a boil in a sauté pan over medium high heat.
- Stir in the curry powder, cumin, and brown sugar. Simmer for 5 minutes.
- Stir in the mango pulp. Simmer for another 5 minutes on low heat until thickened. Set aside.
- Heat up cooking oil in a large sauté pan over medium high heat. Add in the chicken. Sauté for 2 minutes.
- Add in the sliced onion and garlic. Sauté for another 6 minutes until chicken is cooked through.
- Add in the peppers, snap peas, and serranos. Sauté for 3 minutes.
- Season with salt and the chili flakes. Add in the mango. Cook for 2 minutes.
- Mix in the mango curry sauce. Simmer for a couple more minutes.
Somali Style Roast Chicken (Digaag La Foorneeyay)
Somali Style Roast Chicken (Digaag La Foorneeyay)
This is some of the best roasted chicken I’ve made. Xawaash is the main flavor component of the marinade. Rub the marinade underneath the skin of the chicken and all over the outside. The chicken specifically needs to be roasted on a rack to get the skin crispy all over. Roast for 60 minutes. Underneath that rack, place potatoes or your favorite vegetable and roast with the chicken juices dripping on top of them for another 30 minutes.
Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 4 lb roasting chicken
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 2 tbsp butter melted
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp xawaash plus more
- 1 tbsp lemon zest
- 1 tbsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 4 medium potatoes cut into wedges
Instructions
- Mix all of the marinade ingredients together.
- Spoon a couple of large tbsp underneath the skin of the chicken. Rub it all over the meat. Rub the remaining marinade over the entire skin of the chicken. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Place the chicken on a rack on a pan lined in foil. Roast for 60 minutes.
- At the 1 hour mark, take the rack with the chicken off of the pan. Add the potato wedges, coating with the pan drippings. Season with salt and sprinkle 2 tsp of the xawaash over the potatoes. Place the chicken and rack back on top of the potatoes and roast for another 30 minutes.
- Let the chicken rest for at least 15 minutes before serving to redistribute the juices.
Xawaash
Xawaash (pronounced hawaaj) is a complex spice blend used in Somali cuisine; much like berbere is used in Ethiopian cuisine. It is used in dishes such as suugar, a meat and vegetable stew, and suugo, a Somali pasta sauce. I highly recommend that you lightly dry toast the whole spices. It completely changes the flavor, making the xawaash more aromatic.
Equipment
- Spice grinder
Ingredients
Whole Spices
- 3 tbsp cumin seeds
- 3 tbsp coriander seeds
- 1 tbsp fenugreek seeds
- 1 tbsp black peppercorns
- 2 tsp green cardamom pods
- 1 tsp whole cloves
- 1 cinnamon stick
Ground Spices
- 1 tbsp ground sage
- 1 tbsp ground ginger
- 1 tbsp turmeric
- 1 tsp ground nutmeg
Instructions
- Dry toast the whole spices in a skillet over medium heat for 3 minutes.
- Grind the whole spice in a spice grinder. Mix together with the other ground spices. Store in a container for up to 3 months.
