In today’s recipe, I will show you how to make tasty baked yuca fries (or yucca) with a special garlic tomato salsa sauce. Yuca, also known as cassava and manioc, is a starchy root vegetable popular in South American, African and Asian kitchens. I have a more comprehensive post on yuca as an ingredient and how to use it. This recipe is paleo, gluten-free, Whole30 and vegan-friendly.
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The idea for this yuca fries recipe came from a popular Spanish breakfast meal of crusty toasted bread and a mixture of grated tomato, garlic, olive oil and salt, that is rubbed on top. Sometimes this dish is referred to as Catalan tomato bread, although it’s eaten throughout Spain.
I love that starchy and crispy warm food combination with the spicy, zesty, fresh tomato sauce that’s a little bit like mayo-free aioli or salsa. The moisture of the sauce goes well with these baked fries.
How To Make Yuca Fries In The Oven
The cassave (yuca) root varies in size but is generally long and narrow with tough brown skin and dense, creamy white flesh, a little similar in texture to celeriac and yams. It has a very mild flavour and is quite starchy in texture when cooked. It’s drier than a white or sweet potato, or other root vegetables, so it likes to be served with wet condiments and sauces.
Make sure to peel away the brown skin. Slice the root into thick chips and toss with some olive oil and spices. I love roasting or baking yuca fries as it’s much healthier and cleaner than deep-frying. They will take about 25 minutes at 200 C/400 F.
PS. Yuca root, or cassava, can be purchased from quality greengrocers or from Asian, African or South American produce focused stores.
Fresh Tomato & Garlic Salsa
While our baked yuca fries are underway, let’s make a little sauce to dip them in. As I mentioned before, yuca root is quite a dry, dense starchy vegetable and it loves sauces and dips. I particularly like the contrast of hot fries with cold, fresh, zesty salsa.
The inspiration for this fresh salsa sauce comes from the tomato rub you get on the bread in Spain. The tomato is grated fresh and combined with olive oil, salt and sometimes garlic. You can omit the garlic if you like but I think it gives it a nice aioli twist.
Speaking of aioli, you can mix mayonnaise with a little garlic and Sriracha for another fabulous sauce or serve these fries with any other fresh salsa, chimichurri or just a little mayo or ketchup.
Serve these fries as a snack, appetizer or as a side dish to any meat or fish dish. You could use leftovers with eggs in the morning.
More Tasty Vegetable Dishes
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Yuca Fries Baked In The Oven & Tomato Garlic Salsa
Ingredients
- 1 large yuca root also known as cassave, peeled and cut into thick strips
- 2 tablespoons olive oil or coconut oil
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika or sweet
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
For tomato garlic salsa sauce
- 1 large tomato
- 1 medium clove garlic
- 2 tablespoons olive oil extra virgin, ideally
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 tablespoon vinegar white, white wine or red wine
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 200° C / 400° F.
- Drizzle yuca fries with olive oil and sift through the spices and salt. Toss through and coat evenly with your hands. Scatter on a baking tray, greased with a little extra oil (you can use a piece of baking paper as well), making sure not to overcrowd. Place in the oven for 25-30 minutes, until golden brown and crispy.
- To prepare the sauce, grate the whole tomato into a bowl and discard the leftover skin. Grate and add the garlic, olive oil, salt and vinegar. Mix through and set aside.
- Serve the fries with sauce on the side. Dip before each bite.
Notes
Nutrition
SAVE THIS YUCA FRIES RECIPE TO PINTEREST
La Yuca debes cocinarla siempre en agua antes de usarla frita , al horno, puré, etc. Pues es muy fibrosa y resulta dura y seca si la haces directamente luego de pelarla, prueba hacer lo mismo cocinándola primero, la sacas del agua cuando esté blanda, deja escurrir en un colador, la picas en bastones y haces todo lo demás, te aseguro que va a estar mucho mas crujiente y rico, ahh cuando la cocines hazlo en agua con sal, soy de Venezuela y la yuca la comemos mucho así como sustituto de papas fritas, también sancochada en agua y luego le ponemos queso y mantequilla, como acompañante de carnes asadas, le ponemos encima una mezcla de aceites con sal y cilantro, en buñuelos cocinándola y pasandola por un pasapuré para quitar la fibra, luego se le pone queso madurado rallado y mantequilla se hacen unas bolitas se frien en aceite y se meten en un almibar hecho con “papelon” (pieza de azucar de caña sin procesar) y anis dulce (un poquito ) ummmmhhh!!!! te lo recomiendo (: