THE LOCAL OF BRASIL

….and not tapioca as we know it in the States (pudding) .. but tapioca, Brazilian style.  Or I should say, Northeast Brazilian style.  {I swear I am not turning this blog into a food blog .. but it seems that every time I  miss a gap of writing, when I do return to post .. its Friday.   And well, I dedicated from the beginning .. food on every friday.}

So back to tapioca.  When I first came to Brazil and tried tapioca for the first time I didn’t like it, along with other things, but those I will save for a later post.  It came with time and trying it the “right way,” fresh, that I began to like it.  Soon after that, a good friend of mine who owns a tapioca snack stand taught me how to make it and since then I have made it at home, religiously every week.  Or at least try to, when time allows.    I would chalk up tapioca to being the “brazilian tortilla.”  Very versatile, and pretty bland in flavor.  The flavor comes from what you put in it.  It has a gummy texture and when served old {and by old, I mean just 10 mins after being made} can take on a rubbery feel…*yuck* !

It’s made from farinha de mandioca , yucca root flour.  Here in Brazil, it is a commonly used starch, and widely consumed on a daily basis.  {But I imagine it’s quite hard to find in other places around the world in the form of flour.  I am sure you can check your local latin food market or world section in your supermarket, they might carry it.  Or if you have a Brazilian food market in your area, they would be certain to carry it.}  Its  most common uses are as a pre-cooked flour to make farofa, that is sprinkled on top of food here, as a thickener to make soups and sauce {arrowroot}, or as a fermented starch used to make pao de queijo, cheese bread.  But here in the Northeast it is commonly used to make tapioca.  They usually serve this with breakfast or as a mid day snack.  The fillings you can put in them are endless, all you need is a creative mind.  It doesn’t have much of nutritional value, so be sure to add healthy things to it, but it is a gluten free food which is fabulous for people who have gluten allergies/sensitivities. 

The recipe is as follows .. its super easy to make, and also very cheap.  One bag of flour is R$2,50 {which is about $1.50) and will make a ton of tapiocas.

 {Keep in mind when I took these pictures I only had cheese on hand  .. but I will make a list of possible fillings at the end of the post.} 

• A bag, or half bag {depending on how many you want to make, also depending on the size you make} of farinha de mandioca .  Please keep in mind in Brazil ,this is always found in the refrigerated section .  Also if you do not consume the whole bag, you must store the rest in the fridge to maintain its freshness.

• a pinch of salt 
• desired fillings {see below for a list of various fillings, but anything goes}
• a sifter
• nonstick frying pan 

1.)  First you must sift the flour through a sifter into a bowl.  This is the  most time consuming part.  I use a spoon to help it through and so it goes a bit faster.   

sifting the flour

2.)   After you have all your flour sifted, you want to add a pinch of salt, or two, to the flour to add a bit of flavor.  Lightly blend in. 

add salt to sifted flour

 3.)  Next, you want to get your nonstick frying pan good and hot.  Put it on high and wait until its hot.  {Any size pan will work for this.  Tapioca can be made in any size you like.  As well as thickness, but I think the thinner it is, the better, its less chewy.  I also prefer to make mine a bit bigger.}

When your pan is hot {with no oil, butter ect.} Put a thin layer of the flour on the pan with a spoon, in a sprinkling way, to your desired size. How much flour you use depends on how thick you would like it.  {I have also seen here in Brazil people put a metal round form {like a cookie cutter} on the pan, usually on the smaller side and make it like this, to insure the sides are neat.  But this usually results in a thick, chewy tapioca, and I don’t care for it.}

sprinkle flour onto hot pan

4.)  Then you want to wait until the flour starts sticking to itself a bit and begin smoothing out the flour into the shape of a circle. {when you start to smooth it and it is breaking/separating and creating cracks/holes, it is not ready to be smoothed.  Wait a bit longer}  Don’t worry about the edges, they will be messy and rough, it’s almost impossible without a form to make them neat.  Then gently press down to flatten it.  Between this step, the previous, and the next, there is not much time .. you want to work fast to insure it doesn’t burn or get too hard.  

smooth flour into a circle

5.)  Then you want to add your filling. {see below}  Make sure you have it ready to go at your side before you are at this step.  Remember you want to work fast now.  {Here I used cream cheese and grated mozzarella cheese.}

add filling

add more filling if you would like

filling-don't add too much or you won't be able to close it!

6.)  After you have added all your fillings you want, quickly fold it in half and press down with your spatula.  Be careful not to burn your hands.  A variation to this is add a layer of flour on top, instead of folding it in half, and flip it over to cook the other side… although I have never done it this way and I imagine without a metal, round form this would be difficult.  When using a form you put a layer of flour on the bottom, your fillings next, and then a layer on top and just let it sit and cook for a bit until it becomes formed.   My least favorite way.  Just a note, this makes for a very thick tapioca.

Fold it and press, hold it for a minute

Remove from pan

Ready to eat! Yummmmmm

***Suggested Fillings***

• any type of cheese or a combination of cheeses 
• cheese, tomato, oregano or basil or both
• cheese, banana and honey on the side to dip it in {my favorite} 
• guava and cheese
• ham and cheese 
• ham, cheese, tomato
• beef (ground or shredded) and cheese 
• avocado and cheese
• chicken and cheese 
• chicken and pumpkin
• chocolate or nutella with or w/o banana
• pear and gorgonzola cheese
• plain with butter (these are only good if FRESH.  I like mine with eggs in the morning) 
• sausage and eggs
• sausage and cheese 

The choices are endless .. make up your own!  Put whatever you have on hand in them.  Make up new ones that I didn’t list here.  Have fun with it !