World Cup Special - Cabo Verde
I just had to try the food of Cabo Verde who turned out to be the story of the World Cup this year. Cabo Verde's goalkeeper Vozinha stole the hearts of the world for his sheer dogged resilience; saving goal after goal. Aptly I tried cachupa; the national dish of Cabo Verde. This hearty stew of hominy, beans local vegetables has turned into a symbol of Cape Verdean resilience. It's roots derive from the Portuguese settlers arriving to these uninhabited islands off the coast of West Africa. The islands were heavily used in the transatlantic slave trade and as a consequence bringing in enslaved people from the mainland. With the brutality of enslavers the diet of those enslaved was poor. The use of African staples like beans and cassava and the introduction of crops like corn from the Americas became the mainstay of many Cape Verdeans.
I paired the cachupa with some cassava bread and cassava chips making for a very hearty meal.
Chachupa
Ingredients
- 700 ml hominy (29 oz can)
- 425.24 g canned great northern beans (1.5 cups), drained and rinsed - I used cannellini beans as a substitute
- 1-2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 onions , chopped
- 3 tomatoes , chopped
- 5 cloves garlic , sliced
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 savoy cabbage , shredded
- 1 small acorn squash , peeled and cubed, I used a couple of courgettes as I could not obtain a squash… it was a good substitute
- water (to cover)
Instructions
- In a large saucepan , heat up oil over medium heat and add onion and garlic; saute until soft.
- Add paprika, potatoes, acorn squash or courgettes, hominy, great northern beans, shredded savoy cabbage and chopped tomatoes.
- Add water to cover and bring to a simmer, stirring ingredients together once in a while. Cook for about 1 — 1 1/2 hours, or until all the ingredients are tender.
- Serve with bread.
Mandioca Frita
The cassava fries can be served with tomato ketchup or a garlicky-mayonnaise that you dip the fries in. I chose to make a garlic mayonnaise using vegan mayonnaise of course.
Ingredients
- 900g / 2 lb yuca cassava (I used some frozen cassava that had already been cut)
- 1-2 tablespoons coarse sea salt plus more for sprinkling
- 3 cups vegetable oil for frying
- 1 tbsp chopped coriander to sprinkle over the top
Garlic Mayonnaise
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon crushed garlic
- 1-2 teaspoons fresh chopped coriander
- juice from ½ lime
- salt and back pepper to taste
Instructions
- Fill a large saucepan with water and add 1-2 tbsp of salt. Bring to a boil over a high flame.
- While the water comes to a boil, prepare the cassava/yuca if using from fresh. Cut the ends off each cassava/yuca, then cut them into thirds. Slice each round down the middle using a sharp kitchen knife. Use the blade of your knife to lift the skin from the flesh, then cut the cassava/yuca into strips. If you are using frozen then just cut into large chip size strips.
- Once the water boils, place the cassava/yuca fries in the salted water and cook for 10-15 minutes; just until they are tender but still firm. Drain and rinse under cold water.
- Heat 2-3 cm of oil in a frying pan with deep sides. Once the oil is hot fry the drained cassava/yuca fries in batches of 5 or 6 at a time. They generally take 3-5 minutes to become crispy. Remove the fries from the oil once they turn golden-brown in colour.
- For the garlic mayonnaise simply add all the indgredient togther.
- Sprinkle the fries with coarse sea salt and fresh chopped coriander(optional). Serve with ketchup or garlic-mayonnaise for dipping.
Cassava Bread
Ingredients
- 1 cup flour
- 1/2 cup cassava flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1-2 tbsp ground flax seeds
Instructions
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