Food Focus: Caruru de Camarão

Country Of Origin: Brazil

Caruru de Camarão is an okra (ladyfinger) and prawn stew that is commonly eaten as a condiment in the state of Bahia. Which is in north-east Brazil. Caruru de Camarão can be eaten most deliciously with plain white rice. However, the most popular way of eating it is to consume it with Acarajé, which is fritter made from mashed black-eyed peas.

We made Caruru de Camarão once for a Brazilian-themed birthday dinner. It was a simple dish with a strong seafood taste. Some of the original ingredients like manioc (tapioca meal) cannot be easily found in Singapore. Therefore we chose to use breadcrumbs to create a dish of similar consistency.

Caruru de Camarão is usually thickened with either manioc meal or roasted peanuts (or both). It is a matter of personal taste, and also which part of Brazil you are in. We chose to thicken our stew solely with breadcrumbs as it is way faster than having to roast and crush peanuts.

Caruru de Camarão

Ingredients:
-750g to 1kg frozen raw prawns (shrimps), defrosted
-750g to 1kg okra (ladyfinger)
-4 cups hot water mixed with 4 fish or ikan bilis stock cubes (Knorr is the preferred brand)
-2 large onions, finely chopped
-5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
-5 tablespoons vegetable oil
-4 tablespoons plain breadcrumbs
-salt and black pepper to taste

Cut the okra into thick slices and cook in boiling water for 3 minutes. Drain immediately and wash off the excess slime from the okra. Pat dry and set aside. The okra will have excreted so much slime that the drained liquid will look like glue. In a small pot, stir the breadcrumbs into the hot fish stock. Bring the mixture to a boil over high heat and allow to cook for about 3 to 5 minutes. Stir the mixture every now and then to prevent clumping. In a deep-dished non stick pan, fry the onions and garlic with the vegetable oil over medium heat until the onions are soft and golden. Pour the stock and breadcrumb mixture into the pan of onions and garlic Bring to the boil and continue stirring until the mixture thickens. Then add in the okra and shrimp and bring to the boil again. Cook over high heat until the prawns turn pink. Take care not to overcook the prawns. Taste the stew and season with salt and black pepper accordingly. Remove from heat and serve immediately with white rice or if you are lucky to obtain, with Acarajé.