Vatapá

About This Recipe

Vatapá is one of the cornerstones of Afro-Brazilian cuisine — a thick, golden paste of bread, coconut milk, dendê oil, dried shrimps, and groundnuts that is essential to the street food culture of Salvador, Bahia. It is most famously used as the filling inside acarajé (black-eyed pea fritters) but also served as a sauce or side dish throughout the Northeast.

Ingredients

Serves 6

• 200 gstale white bread(crusts removed)
• 400 mlcoconut milk
• 100 gdried shrimps(soaked and ground)
• 100 groasted peanuts(ground)
• 3 tbspdendê (palm oil) or olive oil
• 1 largeonion(diced)
• 3 clovesgarlic(minced)
• 1 thumbfresh ginger(grated)
• 2bird's eye chillies
• 1 tspsalt
• 1 bunchfresh coriander(chopped)

Instructions

1. 1

   Soak bread

   Soak bread in coconut milk for 10 min until soft.

2. 2

   Blend

   Blend bread-coconut mixture, dried shrimps, peanuts, onion, garlic, ginger, and chillies until smooth.

3. 3

   Cook

   Heat dendê oil in a large pan. Add blended paste. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until thick and oil separates, 20 min.

4. 4

   Season and serve

   Season with salt. Stir in coriander. Serve warm with rice or as an acarajé filling.

Variations

• •

  Use cashews instead of peanuts

• •

  Add fresh prawns to the finished paste

• •

  Serve as a sauce over grilled fish

• •

  Vegetarian: swap the protein for roasted king oyster mushrooms, smoked tofu or cooked chickpeas — adjust seasoning slightly upward to compensate.

Storage

Refrigerate up to 4 days. Reheat gently, stirring frequently, adding a little coconut milk to loosen.

Frequently Asked Questions