← Nouns Cooking · Brazilian & Peruvian

Ingredients

• 1 kg cassava (yuca), fresh or frozen, peeled and cut into chunks
• 40 g Butter
• 200 ml Milk, warmed
• Salt
• 800 g Chicken breast
• 2 tbsp Olive oil
• 1 Onion, finely chopped
• 3 cloves Garlic, finely chopped
• 300 ml Passata
• 150 g sweetcorn kernels (optional)
• 1 handful Parsley, chopped
• ½ tsp Black pepper
• 100 g cream cheese (or Brazilian requeijão)
• 150 g Mozzarella, grated
• 30 g Parmesan, finely grated

Method

1. Cover the cassava with cold salted water, bring to the boil and simmer for 25–30 min, until it is very tender and starting to split. Meanwhile, poach the chicken in a separate pan of gently simmering salted water for 15–20 min, until cooked through (75°C/165°F in the thickest part).
2. Drain the cassava, pull out the stringy woody cores, then mash it with the butter and warm milk until smooth and creamy. Season well with salt.
3. Shred the chicken with two forks. Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium heat and cook the onion for 5 min, until soft, then add the garlic for 1 minute.
4. Stir in the passata, chicken, corn (if using), pepper and a pinch of salt. Simmer for 10 min, until thick and saucy rather than wet, then stir in the parsley.
5. Heat the oven to 200°C (400°F). Spread the chicken in a 20 × 30 cm baking dish, dot the cream cheese over it, then cover evenly with the cassava mash.
6. Scatter over the mozzarella and parmesan and bake for 20–25 min, until bubbling and golden brown on top. Let it settle for 5 min before serving.

Tips

• No cassava? Use the same weight of floury potatoes for a potato escondidinho.
• The classic version from the northeast uses carne seca (salted dried beef) instead of chicken: soak it overnight, changing the water, then simmer and shred.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

Easy and Delish Olivia’s Cuisine