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Baptist Mid-Missions of Canada 187 McLaughlin Drive ٠ Moncton, NB ٠ E1A4P4 (506)386-6601
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Tim & Vicki Reiner in a Far Place
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Macaxeira, also known as aipim, mandioca, and, in the U.S. as Yuca
(pronounced (yoo´- kuh ) or Cassava (Manihot esculenta), are
native to the hot and arid parts of the Americas, as well as, the
Caribbean. It is a staple for more than 800 million people around
the globe. The Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist, Linnaeus,
who first designed the modern naming and cataloguing of plants
and animals, mistakenly gave it the generic name of yuca (with one
“c”). So nowadays, many people confusingly refer to this vegetable
using the term “yucca” (pronounced yu´ - kuh), which it is not.
The yucca (Yucca glauca), a member of the lily family and New
Mexico´s state flower, is an ornamental plant that is botanically
unrelated to Macaxeira. Some species of yucca have edible parts. *
The Most Popular Vegetable in Brazil
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when consumed, reduce joint inflammation in the body. By providing a more alkaline environment in the body, it is helpful in arthritic
and rheumatoid conditions,breaks up mineral and inorganic deposits, like kidney and gall bladder stones, and joint calcification.
Macaxeira is completely gluten free, stimulates intestinal flora and better absorption of vitamins and minerals, as well as, decreasing
the absorption of toxins thus improving the immune system. *
In 1500, when the Portuguese arrived in South America, the Tupinamba
natives’ basic staple was Macaxeira. Processing was similar to how
native tribes process it today. A ground meal (farinha de mandioca)
made from Macaxeira was carried on Portuguese slave ships as
provision and cultivated in West Africa around 1550. It quickly became
a staple for central Africa, and later introduced to East Africa,
Madagascar, India, Ceylon, Malaysia, and Indonesia. Probably the
Spanish, British, and Dutch took it to Asia as a famine reserve and
export commodity in the 19th century.
This root vegetable contains phyto-compounds called saponins which,
Click on the photo to visit site -native Brazilians processing rubber & macaxeira
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Some Cassava / Yuca / Macaxeira is poisonous if eaten raw!
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“In Brazilian cuisine, tapioca is used for different types
of meals. In biju (or beiju), the tapioca is moistened,
strained through a sieve to become a coarse flour,
then sprinkled onto a hot griddle or pan, where the
heat makes the starchy grains fuse into a tortilla,
which is often sprinkled with coconut. Then it may be
buttered and eaten as a toast (its most common use
as a breakfast dish), or it may be filled or topped with
either doces (sweet) or salgados (savory) ingredients,
which define the kind of meal the tapioca is used for:
breakfast, afternoon tea or dessert. Choices range
from butter, cheese, chocolate, bananas with
condensed milk, chocolate with bananas, to various
forms of meats and served warm. A traditional dessert
called sagu is also made from pearl tapioca cooked
with cinnamon and cloves in red wine. A restaurant
which specializes in tapioca-based dishes (mostly
fillings) is called in Brazil a tapiocaria.” *
An interesting and informative article (with photos) in the Ohio State Research News clearly explains the problems with the cyanide producing cassava plant and how to avoid exposure.
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“Sweet cassava (Manihot dulcis) [the one sold in the U.S.] … contains little
or no hydrocyanic acid and is generally not considered poisonous. It is used
in much the same way as the potato, yam or green plantain; boiled, fried or
mashed.” *
“There are two varieties of cassava [Macaxeira]. Bitter cassava (Manihot
esulenta) contains poisonous acrid juices and cannot be eaten raw.
However, because of its high starch content this variety is highly
processed, dried and made into tapioca. It is the dehydration process and
starch which form the tiny white beads that we know as ‘pearl tapioca.’
Tapioca is also processed into flake, flour or granular form. Tapioca or
cassava flour is mainly used as a thickener for soups, stews and sauces. In
Brazil the flour is toasted with butter, salt and bacon to make a meal
called ‘farofa’ which is an integral part of [most Brazilian meals]… The
flour is also used to make bread and cakes."




Pão de Queijo do Luis Luiz
Since tapioca is so popular in Brazilian cuisine, I cannot help but leave
you with this traditional Brazilian recipe enjoyed with milk shake,
coffee or pineapple juice. Gather,
• Tapioca flour, 500 gms.
• Parmesan cheese, 200 gms. (grated)
• Milk, 1½ cup
• Peanut oil, ½ cup
• Eggs, 2
• Salt, 1 dessert spoon
Procedure
Pour the milk, peanut oil and eggs into a mixer and blend for a whole minute at medium
speed. After that add the cheese to it and blend till you have a smooth mixture. In a glass
bowl, mix the flour and salt and fold in with the blended mixture with a wooden spatula.
Keep mixing until you have a uniform concoction. Now dig into this dough and make
multiple bite sized balls out of it. Get your oven heated to 200° C and then bake these
balls on a cookie sheet for 25 minutes. Once they turn golden brown take them out of
the oven, cool for a bit and then devour! Read more on tapioca pudding recipe. -copied
Farofa with Beans, Rice, & Beef
Farofa served with Other Dishes
Biju (Beiju)
Sagu made with Tapioca Pearls