01 Jun PRAIA DO SARGI – 30 MAY 2020 – TAPIOCA

Brazilians make a delicious pancake, folded in two, with sweet or salty fillings and a rubbery texture that they call it tapioca.

Although I have been in Brazil for almost three years, it took me a while to understand what this tapioca is made of.

But let’s start with the beginning.

Cassava is a shrub native in South America, with some tubers as roots. 

It is known under a lot of names: mandioca, manioc, macaxeira, yucca, or aipim.

Well, these tubers are very versatile. 

In the first phase, a paste is made from the washed and peeled tubers.

This paste is pressed to extract the starch. 

The paste after extracting the starch is dried and becomes cassava flour, used by Brazilians for the famous farofa.

From the starch are resulting: sour starch, sweet starch, hydrated starch,  and sago.

Sour starch is the starch naturally fermented for 30 days and then dried. It is used in the famous “Pao de queijo”.

Sweet starch is used as a thickening agent. 

Sagu is small balls obtained from sweet starch, in a heated centrifuge. 

They are white and when immersed in a liquid, they become transparent. 

You can use sagu in puddings and for the well-known bubble tea. 

There is also a specific Brazilian dessert called sago. The balls are mixed with natural pineapple juice, orange juice, grape juice, milk, or wine. 

In international cuisine, sagu is used to make fake caviar.

Hydrated starch is used to make tapioca. 

How?

Sprinkled directly in the hot pan it becomes a chewy pancake under the influence of heat. 

Put the filling on half and fold. 

Fry it on the other side and then put it on the plate.  

Good appetite!

Other than that, nothing, all’s good…

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TAPIOCA

Brazilienii fac o clatita delicioasa, impaturita in doua, cu umpluturi dulci sau sarate si cu o textura cauciucata pe care ei o numesc tapioca. 

Desi sunt de aproape trei ani in Brazilia, mi-a luat ceva timp pana sa inteleg din ce se face aceasta tapioca. 

Dar sa incep cu inceputul.

Maniocul este un arbust originar din America de Sud, avand ca radacini niste tuberculi.

Este cunoscut sub o gramada de denumiri: mandioca, manioc, macaxeira, yuca sau aipim. 

Ei bine, acesti tuberculi sunt foarte versatili si din ei iau nastere produse cu intrebuintari diferite.

Din tuberculii spalati si decojiti se face in prima faza o pasta.

Aceasta pasta este presata extragandu-se amidonul.

Pasta dupa extragerea amidonului este uscata si devine faina de manioca, folosita de catre brazilieni la celebra farofa. 

Din amidon rezulta: amidonul acru, amidonul dulce, amidonul hidratat si sagu. 

Faina de amidon acru este amidonul fermentat natural si uscat. El este folosit la celebra “Pao de queijo”.

Amidonul dulce este folosit ca si element de ingrosare.

Sagu sunt niste bilute obtinute din amidonul dulce, intr-o centrifuga incalzita. Sunt de culoare alba si cand sunt scufundate intr-un lichid, devin transparente.

Din sagu se fac budinci, ceai cu bule, un desert specific brazilian numit tot sagu in care bilutele sunt amestecate cu suc natural de ananas, portocale struguri, lapte sau vin.

In bucataria internationala, sagu este folosit pentru a face caviarul fals. 

Din amidonul hidratat se face tapioca.

Cum?

Se presara direct in tigaia incinsa iar el devine o clatita cauciucata sub influenta caldurii.

Se pune umplutura pe o jumatate si se impatureste.

Se perpeleste bine pe ambele parti si jumatatea de disc este pusa in farfurie.

Pofta buna!

In rest, nimic, toate bune…