Dubai – Also commonly known as yuca or manioc, cassava was the popular food chosen to be the highlight of a cooking show held in the Brazil Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai on Wednesday (23). The world exhibition is taking place till March in the United Arab Emirates. Pictured, some ingredients that can be used alongside cassava.
Large is the range of foods that can be done with cassava. To show the its versatility, Brazilian chef Thiago Castanho chose its versions as tapioca, bread, dumpling, tucupi and cake.
The chef from Pará had already presented some typical dishes from the Amazon in an event in the Brazil Pavilion last week. In the previous event, one of the stars was açaí, which has become popular in the Gulf region. “Cassava is a product I believe could be the new açaí, once they find its potential for recipes and properties,” Castanho said.
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In addition to traditional cassava dishes from the North of Brazil, the chef has also brought a recipe he learned in Thailand. It’s the tapioca dumpling with shrimp. “This is not a Brazilian dish, but I wanted to bring it, too, to show that there’re different ways to cook it. Açaí, for example, became known here and in the South of Brazil in a way that we don’t eat it [in Pará and the North of the country],” he finished.
The cooking shows were held by the Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex-Brasil) and supported by the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce (ABCC).
Translated by Guilherme Miranda