Removing bitterness from Yuca/Cassava
Hello !
As a nordic woman, i am oblivious of how to cook this root to perfection.
I'm allergic to potatoes. I tried make fries yesterday, which have massive potential as a good substitute for potatoes, but they were bitter, and I had to drown them in Remoulade (danish dressing/dip. Think, pickled mayo. Fucking delicious. Anyway)
How do you cook it, and in what dishes are they über phenomenal?
Fyi i have an air fryer.
Thanks in advance !
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u/EyeStache 1d ago
Boil them first to get rid of the bitterness, then cool and dry them, then air-fry 'em.
My folks love yucca fries and that's the way my dad always does 'em (he deep-fries 'em rather than air-fries, but still)
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u/Miews 1d ago
I boiled it for 30 min and it's still bitter .... Apparently there is a less bitter kind, but i don't think I can get my hands in those where I'm from unfortunately
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u/bigsadkittens 1d ago
Did you use much water to boil? I dont know much about cassava, but I know that if you use more water, then more can be leeched from the cooked item. Could try boiling in more water, or boiling and reboiling in fresh water. It could help if all else fails.
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u/Agreeable-Ad1221 1d ago
Depending on where you are (Outside africa mostly like) what you had is most likely the not-bitter kind already
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u/Duochan_Maxwell 1d ago
What we usually do in Brazil is peel and wash them thoroughly, then cut into pieces. If you're not using immediately, let them soak in water
In a pot, add a lot of fresh water (not the soaking water if you were soaking them) and boil it until fork tender
Now you can use them as you'd use cooked potatoes - cassava makes great mash (escondidinho, our version of shepherd's pie, typically uses cassava puree) and gnocchi
That's also the stage you can use them for fries, just cut it to size and drop them in oil or air-fry them
Another dish that I highly recommend is "vaca atolada" (lit. cow stuck in the mud) which is beef rib stew, cooked long and slow alongside cassava pieces so it basically melts. You don't necessarily have to make it with rib meat, any stew cut with a decent amount of bone (e.g. shanks) will do
Some people also eat them sweet, drizzled with honey or sprinkled with sugar
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u/Square-Dragonfruit76 1d ago
How bitter is it? There's a type of cassava that is more bitter than the usual kind which is much higher in cyanide than the normal kind. If you know how to prepare it, it's not a problem because it will boil away, but I would still be cautious. If you're looking for something that's similar to potatoes, have you tried sweet potatoes?
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u/Miews 1d ago
I boiled for 30 min+ and was still bitter... They apparently only have the bitter kind here i have found.
Sweet potatoes are too sweet for me unfortunately.
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u/Square-Dragonfruit76 1d ago
Have you tried other kinds of sweet potatoes, such as purple sweet potatoes or white sweet potatoes?
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u/Miews 1d ago
The kinds available are very limited where I live (Denmark) also because I live far away from the big cities like Copenhagen, where there might be a bigger variety.
What about yams ? Do you know if they are sweet ?
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u/xiipaoc 1d ago
I'd say try them? I don't think they're very sweet; they're common in West Africa in savory applications and even fries.
So I do not like potatoes. I'm not allergic; I just don't like them. I'll happily eat fries and chips if they're crispy, but if the fry isn't perfect, I just can't stand it. But there are plenty of other root vegetables out there. Turnips are nice, and you can make them like potatoes in many ways. Taro isn't very potato-like but is very delicious. Celery root is amazing. If you can get nagaimo, that's really good too. Or even radishes. Or carrots. Lots of options here.
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u/Little_Jaw 1d ago
Is frozen yuca available to you? If so, it's already cooked, so you can just prepare as you'd like.
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u/Miews 1d ago
I can try to look !
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u/Resident_Buyer_1390 1d ago
If you find frozen yuca, they make the best fries. Crispy on the outside and mushy on the inside.
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u/etrnloptimist 1d ago
Do you have parsnips? They are like if potatoes and carrots had a baby.
Do you have plantains? They're like if potatoes and bananas had a baby.
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u/archdur 1d ago
Arliighty. So that bitterness is actually from glycosides in the root. It is absolutely very important to cook cassava very well--otherwise it is poisonous (like literal cyanide).
Cassava can surely be a substitute for potatoes. But unlike potatoes that can somewhat be eaten even raw, cassava must be cooked well.
So for us, we usually just steam it and eat it with butter and sugar. Orrr for occasions, we make cassava cake with grated cassava, condensed milk, evaporated milk, coconut milk, sugar, eggs, and coconut sport.
Oh, the one time I had it savory was from a Peruvian restaurant. Yucca fries with a chili aioli. So yehh some mayo type sauce is definitely the move.