Words by Melanie Bowden Simón
Recipe by Luis Simón
Photography by Chia Chong
Styling by Libbie Summers
Yuca con mojo
serves 4-6
This is one recipe where you can cheat a little and save some time (and maybe your fingers): In the Latin market frozen section of most grocery stores you can find plain, peeled, bagged yuca.
Ingredients:
1 lb bag of frozen yuca
1 large Vidalia onion, cut in half and thinly sliced
1/2 cup of olive oil
3 teaspoons kosher salt
4-5 garlic cloves
Splash of vinegar
1 recipe prepared Luis’ Cuban Black Beans, recipe HERE
4 slices bacon, cooked crisp and chopped (optional)
Directions:
Place yuca in a 4-quart pan and cover with water by about 2 inches. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to medium. Simmer for about 20 minutes or tender with a fork test. Transfer to a colander and drain. Once cool enough to handle, cut pieces in half lengthwise and remove woody roots that run down the middle. Return to pan, cover and keep warm while preparing the mojo.
For the mojo:
In a medium sauté pan over medium-low heat, add the oil and the chopped onions. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion begins to brown (about 8 minutes).
Using a mortar and pestle or the back of a chef’s knife, mash the garlic and salt together to form a paste. Stir into the cooked onion and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Stir in vinegar and remove from heat.
To Serve: Spoon yuca onto the prepared beans and top with the mojo. Sprinkle with bacon if you like. Serve immediately.
Leftover Yuca? Add a few tablespoons of oil to a hot pan and fry up the yuca for a perfect breakfast alongside eggs.
A little about contributor Melanie Bowden Simón.
Melanie Bowden Simón is a freelance writer, editor and publicist based in Savannah, GA. Following journalism and Spanish degrees from the University of Georgia, she worked for Tina Brown, Harvey Weinstein and Cathleen Black at Talk Media. She says hands down, this was the best and brightest education a kid could ask for.
