Bangladeshi Spiced Shrimp and Green Bean Stir-Fry

When I was growing up, this dish was ever present during mealtimes, cooked lovingly by my mother and served with steaming plates of freshly cooked basmati rice. We always ate with our hands, which is customary, adding a squeeze of lebu or lemon on top before savoring a morsel. This recipe has been passed down to me by my mother, and I make it whenever nostalgia hits. Chingri—shrimp in Bengali—are traditionally cooked with lubi uri, or borboti, long beans in mustard oil. Occasionally, I swap the long beans for regular green beans as they are very similar and easier to source, and use vegetable oil instead of mustard oil. The shrimp are cooked toward the latter half of the process, which keeps them tender and lightly spiced, complementing the freshness of the beans and aroma of cilantro and green chiles. This dish is a taste of classic Bangladeshi home cooking.