Vegetable
Yuca
Yuca, mandioca
Also called cassava, manioc, mandioca, tapioca root
A long, bark-skinned starchy root with dense white flesh. Boiled, it is waxy and faintly sweet; fried from boiled, it is the best chip you have not made yet. Always cooked, never raw.
Origin
Amazon basin; a staple from Paraguay to the Caribbean and across West Africa.
Flavour
Mild, starchy, slightly sweet and buttery when boiled.
How to use it
Peel the bark and the pink layer under it, cut into batons, remove the woody central cord, boil until tender, then fry or dress. Frozen peeled yuca is good and saves the peeling.
Storage
Fresh roots keep 3-4 days in a cool place; peeled pieces freeze well.
Recipes using it
Yuca frita con chicharrón
Boiled-then-fried cassava batons with crisp pork belly, curtido and a thin tomato salsa — Salvadoran plaza food.
Easy
Encebollado
Encebollado de pescado
Ecuador's coastal fish and yuca soup, topped with lime-pickled red onion — the breakfast that cures Saturday night.
Easy
