Badhakopi Diye Chingri

(Bangali-style cabbage with shrimp and turmeric)

By Noor Shams

Serves 3–4

You can omit the shrimp to make a cabbage bhaji that’s still delicious, but the shrimp does impart a certain flavor to this dish that is otherwise hard to replicate.

This is a dish that my mom frequently made while I was growing up, and it was one of my favorites (along with “lau chingri”, “mishti kumra diye chingri” and “palong shak diye chingri” — as you might guess, I love the combination of shrimp & vegetables!), so I was surprised to hear from many Bangladeshis who told me that they’ve never had this Bangali dish when I recently posted it on Instagram. If you’ve never had it, this is definitely an easy-to-prepare dish that’s worth trying out!

Ingredients

15–20 medium large shrimp, cleaned & deveined
3/4 teaspoon turmeric
2–3 tablespoons vegetable or mustard oil
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 medium onion, chopped
1 teaspoon ginger-garlic paste,
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon red chili powder
1 small cabbage, finely chopped
1 tomato, chopped (optional)
2–3 green chilies (optional)
Handful cilantro, chopped
Salt, to taste

Instructions

1. Marinate shrimp with pinches of turmeric (about 1/4th tsp) and sprinkles of salt. Set aside.

2. Heat about 2 tablespoons of the oil in a wide cast iron pan or skillet set over medium heat.

3. Part-cook the shrimp very quickly in two batches, frying about 1–2 minutes on each side. Remove from heat & set aside.

4. To the same pan, add a bit more oil (if it has dried out). Once the oil is hot, add cumin seeds and cook for a minute or so.

5. Add onions next, cooking until they are soft and translucent.

6. Add ginger-garlic paste, turmeric (remaining ½ teaspoon), cumin and red chili powder to the onions and cook further for another minute or two, until the spices and onions have mixed well.

7. Add the cabbage and tomatoes (if using), and cook on medium-high heat, stirring frequently. Cook until cabbage loses about half its volume, then lower the heat and cook further until most of the water has evaporated and the cabbage has wilted a bit while still retaining a bite.

8. Once the cabbage has mostly finished cooking, stir the shrimp back into the pan. Add salt to taste and chopped cilantro. Add in green chillies if you like more heat.

9. Cook on low-heat for a few more minutes until the shrimp is thoroughly cooked, then remove the pan from heat.

10. Serve warm with rice, daal and wedges of lime on the side.

Notes

• You may want to cover up the pan during a part of the cooking process but make sure the cabbage doesn’t overcook or become soggy. The final result should be neither mushy nor crunchy, you want the cabbage to be soft while still having some texture.
• For best results, I always recommend cooking with shell & tail-on shrimp (even better if you can find ones with the head on!) as that adds much more flavor to any dish. Keeping the shell on also prevents the shrimp from getting overcooked quickly and becoming rubbery.

Noor Shams (about):

Noor Shams is based in New York and shares her culinary magic on Instagram at @Noorieboorie. She also co-runs Cue-rated, a platform promoting south Asian arts, culture and entrepreneurship.

Find her at:
Instagram: @Noorieboorie
Website: www.cue-rated.com