Yuca Recipe Not Yucca Recipe
Don’t Say Yucca To My Yuca Recipe!
You can work up an appetite running a food blog. It is not just the writing and photos that make you want to nosh, but getting to go through the he said she said of ingredients really burns up the calories. We eaters like it simple and delicious, but, being part of the human race, we need to mix things up and hope our info super highway can straighten things out. When it’s a Yucca recipe we want we, more than likely, want a Yuca recipe and when we search for a yuca recipe, cassava keeps coming up and we just can’t figure out why. Then there is a realization – cassava and yuca are the same thing. The cassava root is the #3 carbohydrate in the world and a staple for about a half a billion people. Is it any wonder that it would have a cute nickname – yuca. Don’t feel bad about having searched for a yucca recipe when you really meant yuca (We know you did. The Google tells us so!). Anyway, nobody wants to say – “Oh, look at that platter of Yucca” because this word is pronounced Yuck-a. A platter of yuca (pronounced yooooca) sound much nicer.
How About Some Yuca Fries
In order to give the folks who never have had yuca a sense of comfort and easy palatability, we like to compare yuca to potatoes. “They are just like potatoes” we like to say. Along with “You cook them the same as potatoes”, but then about step 2 in the yuca recipe is where lots of things go haywire. Take a recipe for yuca fries. Many think they are treating yuca like potatoes, but when I make real french fries I have never, ever, ever boiled my potatoes before turning them into fries. I am unsure where the insistence that the cassava fries be boiled comes from. Perhaps it is the cyanide. What? You didn’t know there is cyanide in cassava? Don’t worry the cassava you get in the Kroger is not likely to kill you.
To Boil Or Not To Boil?
This isn’t to say you can’t boil them first before frying. You can. But it just seems like an extra step because there is more clean up. If you choose to boil them first, try adding garlic to the water. They will have a nice garlicky flavor when done. Be forewarned, so will your oil! Also, make sure they are well drained and really dry! The deer in headlights look on a cooks face when the oil in a deep fryer that is ready to overflow is not pretty! Fry in batches too, so as not to over crowd the fryer! Make sure the oil is allowed to return to the correct cooking temperature between batches. No, a deep fryer is not compulsory, but it is just a heck of a lot easier to control the temperature in a deep fryer than it is on the stove!
Double Fried Yuca Fries
Yuca fries can made classically, just like french fries, with a 2 step frying method. The fries are first poached in oil at a low temperature – between 275F and 300F – to make them tender. The oil is heated to 350F, and the fries are fried again to make them crispy on the outside and tender on the inside!
There is one other difference in the cooking process for yuca fries versus french fries. Classically, cut potatoes for french fries are rinsed or allowed to soak in cold water to remove some starch. Just as I don’t boil my potatoes before frying them, I don’t rinse my yuca before frying it.
A boiled then fried yuca fry will have a slightly more tender texture to it while a double fried yuca fry will be very crisp. Both are delicious, it just a matter of how many pots you want to wash.
Don’t Forget The Lime
Another difference with yuca fries vs french fries is that yuca fries are typically served with fresh lime and better sauces than plain mayonnaise and ketchup. The subtle sweetness of yuca goes well with lime, garlic and cilantro. For me, I do still love them dipped in ketchup, but with some added sriracha for some kick. A sriracha ketchup loves lime, too.
Yuca Recipe – Yuca Fries!
Here is a yuca recipe for both pre-boiled and double fried yuca fries and also recipes for dipping sauces, too!
BOILED THEN FRIED
DOUBLE FRIED
- 1 lime
- 1 or 2 large cassava roots (aka yuca or manioc)
- seasoning salt like Lowery's
- Ancho Chilli Powder
- salt
- 2 cloves of garlic (optional if boiling the fries first)
- Oil for a deep fryer.
- 1/2 cup of your favorite mayonnaise
- 1/2 oz fresh cilantro
- 1 clove of garlic
- 1 lime
- salt and pepper
- 1/2 cup of your favorite kechup
- Sriracha sauce to taste.
- Cut the lime into wedges.
- Peel the cassava roots and trim the ends. Cut the roots into 4 inch sections. Using a sharp knife, cut each section into 1/4 inch thick x 4 inch long sticks.
- Peel and chop the garlic roughly. Fill a pot large enough to hold the fries with water. Bring the water to boil. Add the garlic. When the water is boiling, add the fries and boil until just tender about 3-4 minutes.
- Drain the boiled fries in a colander and pour them out on a tray lined with paper towel. Dry them well.
- Fill a deep fryer according to the manufacturers instructions. Pre-heat the oil to 350F. Fry the boiled yuca fries in batches until golden brown and crispy, about 5-7 minutes.
- Drain on a tray lined with paper towel. Season with seasoning salt or ancho chili powder and salt.
- Serve hot with the lime wedges and dipping sauces.
- Fill a deep fryer according to the manufacturers instructions. Pre-heat the oil to 300F. Fry the fry yuca fries in batches until they are just cooked through and tender, about 3-5 minutes. Drain the yuca fries on a tray lined with paper towels. Bring the oil temperature to 350F. Re-fry the yuca fries in batches until golden brown and crispy, about 2-3 minutes.
- Drain on a tray lined with paper towel. Season with seasoning salt or ancho chili powder and salt.
- Serve hot with the lime wedges and dipping sauces.
- Wash and chop the cilantro finely. Peel and chop the garlic finely.
- In a medium bowl, mix the mayonnaise, cilantro, and garlic. Squeeze in fresh lime juice to taste.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover with plastic wrap and chill at least 1/3 hour to let the flavors combine.
- Serve with hot yuca fries.
- In a medium bowl, mix the ketchup and sriracha to taste.
- Serve with hot yuca fries.
- Be warned, after frying yuca fries that have been boiled with garlic, you may have to change the oil as it will take on a garlic flavor.
I hope you enjoy! Keep Eating! Keep Innovating!
Have you ever made yuca fries? Do you pre-boil them? Let us know all about it in the comments or on Facebook.
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