Today, we're making Yuca, also known as Manioc or cassava. Now Yuca is a starchy root that comes from a woody shrub from South America. It's enjoyed the world over, lots of different cuisines have adopted it and for good reason, it's got a substantial and compact texture that is unbeatable. Now Elle's here and she's gone show us one of her favorite ways to make it. Bridget, I've had Yuca made so many different ways around the world, and it's never done wrong.
Today, we're gone fry it. that's how I like to eat it. Mine too. So to start, all of the goodness of the Yuca is under this bark. So we got a lot of prep that we need to do. I'm gone start by taking off about one inch of the ends. And Yuca fights back. Oh, it does.
It puts up a good fight, but it's worth it. It sure is. And then you're gone cut it into as many three-inch pieces as it allows. Now I'm just gone use my sharp knife to start to chip away at this bark here. So just going down the sides like this, don't worry about getting it perfect the first go round we're gone just get the bark off this time, and then go around again to get any parts that aren't stark white.
Now that we've cut them into halves, pop out the woody core. I like to kind of start a little dam and then scoop. Just takes a little work. Make myself a little dam there. It almost wants to come out, once you get your spoon under there. [Bridget] It yields. Yes, it does.
Now that we have the core out, we're gone cut them into three quarter inch pieces. Okay. If you're in a crunch, you can buy Yuca frozen, but it's always recommended to use fresh Yuca. Okay Bridget, we started with two pounds of fresh Yuca, we peeled, cut and cored it so it might be a little less than that now but we're ready to boil which is our first step before frying.
Okay, I have three quarts of water boiling here in a Dutch oven, and I have one teaspoon of table salt. And I'm just gone add Yuca. Bringing this to a vigorous simmer and letting it cook for 20 to 25 minutes helps to break down the enzymes, makes it translucent and fluffy. It's very important for frying.
All right Bridget, it's been 25 minutes, I'm gone turn this off. I know that these are ready because I can pierce them with the fork quite easily. This is the tenderness we were looking for. [Bridget] All right, so we're done with boiling. Yeah, we're done with boiling. Let's just take it to the sink and drain it.
Okay. And then we'll dry it.There you go, they smell great. Now boiled Yuca are fine to eat right now though. Yeah, we can eat them now or you can freeze them, or you can fry them.
Okay, I'm gone lay these out on this baking sheet so that they can dry. I'm gone help them out by patting them dry a little bit.
And it's very important that we get these dry before frying, cause water and oil equals house fire. Nightmare. So I'm just gone pat these nice and dry and then we can fry them. Okay Bridget, so we're ready to fry. We have two quarts of vegetable oil over medium high heat, that 350 degrees. We're gone let it fry for six to eight minutes. Yeah, you definitely wouldn't want to do this with wet Yucas. No.
Really good idea that you dried 'em off. Yep. And this is vegetable oil or Yes. You could use peanut oil probably as well. You can, yeah. All right, we're all set, six to eight minutes. Bridget, do you know what time it is? I hope it's Yuca fry time. It is Yuca fry time. It's been about six minutes.
These are done frying I'm just gone use my spider and pull them out of the oil, putting them on a lined sheet tray so that they can drain off some of the oil. They look beautiful. They are gorgeous. They're golden brown, this is what we were looking for. And they look a little puffed, which I love that.
Oh yeah, that means there's a good surprise on the inside. (Bridget laughs) Hope it's cash. I think it's just gone be good, fluffy Yuca but you know, that's good as cash, right? I will take that. All right, so I'm gone season this with a little bit of salt.
Now I have had Yuca with a host of condiments, I prefer with pickle red onions. And if you want to know where you can find that recipe, it's on our website. Okay so let's give these Yuca the design love they deserve! Little food styling. They stay crisp too.
They do, they do. This looks lovely. I'm ready to eat it. Yes, please. Let me give you a few of these good Yuca fries here, how's that for you? That looks fantastic. Great, okay. I'm gone have a few myself. Would you like some pickled-on onions? [Bridget] I would love pickled onions.
Okay, good. What a treat. I've never had it with pickled onions, I've had it with evaporated milk and cheese and spices. That sounds insanely delicious. I am into the pickled-on onions.
That crust on the outside it's pillowy soft, but boy is it crunchy! Do you now see why the pickled onion is the ideal accompaniment? It adds a little sweetness to that crunch. I love the vinegar too, of the pickled-on onions. It's great to serve something vinegary or tart with fried foods.
It just really breaks through it. And the inside is so creamy and tender. I was just gone say that, it's the best part. (Bridget giggles) That much crispness with a short fry was only like six minutes. Exactly. Yeah, you could boil them out of time, as you said, and then fry them right before people come over, eat them all and then don't tell them that you fried them. That's not selfish, is it? No, not at all. It's self-care. It is self-care.
It's selfcare. Oh, think so. Well, to make fried Yuca at home, cut peeled and cored Yuca into small wedges, preboil the Yuca to tenderize them, and then fry them until nice and crisp. And don't forget the salt and pickled onions. So, from America's Test Kitchen, craveable and so easy, fried Yuca.
You can get this recipe and all the recipes from this season, along with product reviews and select episodes on our website, that's americastestkitchen.com/tv. I really thought I was gone turn around they'd all be gone. Thank you for visiting and see you on next recipes.
Post a Comment
Post a Comment