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SMOKY BAKED YUCA WEDGES WITH GUAVA KETCHUP

SERVES 4 (MAKES 1½ CUPS GUAVA KETCHUP)

GUAVA AND YUCA are both typical Caribbean ingredients, and they taste wonderful together. Here the yuca is roasted in the oven like steak fries. My homemade Smoke Salt gets sprinkled over them before serving for a killer barbecue-like taste alongside the guava-based ketchup. The ketchup batch doubles easily—I love it on a veggie burger or served with the Callaloo and Smoky Gouda Fried Dumplings.

GUAVA KETCHUP

1¼ cups guava juice

½ cup distilled white vinegar

¼ cup tomato puree

2 tablespoons molasses

8 dry-packed sun-dried tomatoes halves (not oil-packed)

½ white onion, roughly chopped

3 garlic cloves, smashed

2 pieces crystallized ginger

½ teaspoon ground allspice

⅛ teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 fresh thyme sprig

½ teaspoon fine sea salt

1 Scotch bonnet pepper, pricked 2 times with a fork

YUCA WEDGES

2 pounds yuca

2 teaspoons fine sea salt

2 tablespoons coconut oil

2 teaspoons Smoke Salt, or store-bought smoked salt

  1. MAKE THE GUAVA KETCHUP: Combine the guava juice, vinegar, tomato puree, molasses, sun-dried tomato halves, onion, garlic, ginger, allspice, cinnamon, thyme, and sea salt in a medium saucepan. Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium-high heat, stirring often, then reduce the heat to medium-low and add the Scotch bonnet. Simmer gently, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is thick and the flavors have come together, about 30 minutes. Remove from the heat to cool for 20 minutes.
  2. Fish out the Scotch bonnet and discard (if you want your ketchup extra spicy, leave it in) and transfer the mixture to a blender. Blend until smooth. Scrape the ketchup into an airtight container and refrigerate. It will keep refrigerated for up to 2 weeks.
  3. MAKE THE YUCA WEDGES: Preheat the oven to 450°F.
  4. Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil. Slice off the ends of each yuca, then use a vegetable peeler to peel off the tough skin. Slice each yuca in half crosswise if needed so it fits in the pan (if your yuca is small, don’t worry about it). Add the salt and boil for 15 minutes. Drain the yuca and pat with paper towels, then quarter it lengthwise, slice away the tough core, and slice the pieces lengthwise (so they look like thick-cut steak fries).
  5. Transfer the yuca wedges to a large bowl and toss with the coconut oil and Smoke Salt, then transfer to a rimmed baking sheet. Roast for 15 minutes, then use a spatula to turn them. Roast until browned, crisp, and tender, about 15 minutes longer. Remove from the oven and transfer to a plate. Serve with the Guava Ketchup.

FOR THE LOVE OF BAMMY

Yuca is not just for fries. In Jamaica yuca (called cassava on the island) is the basis for one of our most beloved foods, the bammy. Along with fried dumplings and festival, bammy is one of Jamaica’s staple starches, and we eat it for breakfast or dinner, with fish, veggies or solo as a snack. These flatbreads are made from yuca that has been grated, rinsed, dried, and salted to create a flour, and they go back to the time of Jamaica’s native Arawak people. These thick, pancake-sized flatbread are usually soaked in coconut milk and then pan-fried, deep-fried, or steamed until golden-crisp on the outside (if frying) and tender and soft on the inside. It’s possible to make bammy at home but the process is not fast or simple. For those reasons most Jamaicans satisfy their craving for bammy at food stalls on the street. It’s one of the first things I look for when I go back to visit.