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Haitian kasav
Crisp cassava flatbread
Kasav: crisp cassava flatbread from northern Haiti
In Cap-Haïtien and the hill towns of the north, kasav is made from nothing but grated, pressed cassava, toasted on a wide griddle into a flat, pale round that is crisp outside and chewy within. People break it over soup, spread it with peanut butter for breakfast, or buy the sweet version studded with grated coconut and sugar from roadside sellers. At home the key is getting the cassava truly dry: wet pulp steams into a gummy pancake, the most common failure. This recipe uses frozen grated sweet cassava, which is sold ready to use. Chef's tip: rub the dry pulp through a coarse sieve before cooking; the fine, even crumbs bind into a lacier, crisper bread.
- Total time
- 90 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ lb frozen grated cassavathawed
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 ⅛ oz grated coconut (optional)fresh or desiccated, for a sweet version
- 2 tbsp brown sugar (optional)for a sweet version
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Method
0/7 doneStep 1: Tip 2 ¼ lb frozen grated cassava into a clean tea towel, twist it tight and squeeze over the sink until no more liquid runs out. Leave it wrapped under a heavy pan for 20 minutes, then squeeze again; the pulp should feel dry and crumbly.
25 minStep 2: Rub the pulp through a coarse sieve or crumble it with your fingers, breaking up every lump, and mix in 1 tsp salt. For sweet kasav, mix in 2 ⅛ oz grated coconut and 2 tbsp brown sugar too.
Step 3: Heat a large heavy frying pan or flat griddle over a medium heat, with no oil. Set an 18 cm metal ring in it, or just shape freehand.
Step 4: Scatter a layer of cassava about 5 mm thick into the ring and press it down lightly with the back of a spoon. Lift off the ring.
1 minStep 5: Cook for 5 minutes, until the underside is dry, firm and patched with pale gold and the round holds together when you slide a spatula under it.
5 minStep 6: Flip and cook 4–5 minutes more, until both sides are crisp. Repeat with the rest, cooling the kasav on a rack so they stay crisp.
5 minStep 7: Eat warm, or keep cooled kasav in a tin for 3 days and re-crisp in a dry pan.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 210 kcal
- Protein
- 1 g
- Carbs
- 50 g
- Fat
- 1 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does haitian kasav take?
- About 90 minutes in total: 40 minutes to prepare and 50 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 6 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
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