| Brazilian recipe
and it's pronounced biju (bee-JOO) or tapioquinha
(tah-pee-oh-KI-nya). This is extremely cheap to make and
is served for breakfast or as an afternoon snack with a
strong cup of coffee. In many cities in Brazil you can
find these kind ladies all dressed in white, the Bahianas,
who will make it for you on the street in under 2 minutes.
Put all the starch in a deep bowl and cover it with water.
Mix it well with your hands making sure to break any lumps.
Let it sit for about 5 minutes and when it starts to
sediment, carefully pour the water out.
You want to get rid of as much water as possible and the
best way to do this is to go about it in stages, letting it rest
and then pouring more of the water out. This should be done
about 10 hours before you plan to prepare to cook (I suggest
you do it the night before).Leave the starch in the bowl
overnight or for whatever time it takes for the water to
evaporate. When the surface of the starch is hard to the
touch, you're ready to cook
Now, to prepare the biju you'll need a small or medium
non-stick skillet and a wire-mesh sieve that's not terribly
fine.
Break off a piece of the starch: it should be solid by this
time so you can grab large chunks of it. Rub it against the
inner side of the sieve catching the small flakes in some
kind of container.
Put the skillet over medium to medium-high heat and let it
warm up. Now, grab a handful of starch flakes and toss
enough of them around over the skillet to form a thin layer
that covers the entire bottom - you're making something that
will look like a crepe. The flakes will start to stick to
each other and after about 1 minute, when it looks like the
crepe is getting loose, sprinkle some coconut flakes over it
and fold in half. Optionally, you might not use coconut at
all; some people like it just plain. Turn it once and let it
cook for another minute; be careful not to let it burn !
Take it off the skillet and spread some margarine or
vegetable spread on top of your biju. Repeat to make as many
bijus as you like.
In case you don't want to make it all at once, you can save
the starch for a later time. The secret is to keep some
moisture in it, so if you plan to use it again the next day,
sprinkle some water on it at night. If you grated too much
of the starch, mix the remaining flakes with the rest of the
starch before you add the water. If it becomes too dry, the
flakes will not coalesce to form the biju.
Serves: 15 or more
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