Tacaca

Ingredients

• 1.5 litres tucupi
• 6 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 bunch chicory (chicória do Pará) or coriander
• 3 malagueta chillies
• 120 g tapioca starch (goma de tapioca)
• 700 ml cold water
• 200 g large whole dried shrimp
• 300 g jambu leaves and tender stems
• Salt to taste

Before you cook

• Soak the dried shrimp in warm water for 20 minutes to draw out some of the salt, then drain them.
• Pick over the jambu, keeping the leaves and tender stems, and wash them well.
• Whisk the tapioca starch into the cold water in a jug until no lumps remain.

Steps

1. Pour the tucupi into a large pot with the garlic, chicory and chillies.
2. Bring it to the boil, then simmer uncovered for 30 minutes so the tucupi is fully cooked and safe.
3. Season the broth with salt and keep it at a bare simmer.
4. Bring a separate pan of water to the boil and cook the jambu for eight minutes, until wilted and soft.
5. Drain the jambu and set it aside.
6. Pour the tapioca slurry into a clean saucepan and set it over medium-low heat.
7. Stir constantly for about eight minutes, until the liquid turns from milky white to clear and thickens into a glossy gel.
8. Take the gum off the heat before it sets stiff, as it should still pour slowly from the spoon.
9. Spoon a ladle of the warm tapioca gum into the bottom of each bowl.
10. Lay a generous tangle of jambu on top of the gum.
11. Add a handful of the soaked shrimp to each bowl.
12. Pour the boiling tucupi over everything and serve at once, to be drunk straight from the bowl.