America's Test Kitchen (2000–…): Season 22, Episode 25 - Pupusas and Yuca - full transcript

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

-Today on
"America's Test Kitchen,"

Dan and Julia
make pupusas with curtido,

Adam reveals his top picks
for soda makers,

and Elle makes Bridget
crispy fried yuca.

It's all coming up right here
on "America's Test Kitchen."

♪♪

-Pupusas are a staple
of Latin American cuisine



since pre-Columbian times.

It is the national dish
of El Salvador.

However, Hondurans also
lay claim to the dish.

Now, pupusas are flattened
rounds of masa that are stuffed,

often with cheese,
cooked on a griddle,

and served with curtido,
a slaw made of cabbage.

And today, Dan's gonna
show us how to make them.

-So, pupusas are one
of my favorite foods.

-Mm-hmm.
-They're so comforting.

And they're really fun
to put together.

So I'm excited
to get into this one.

And we're gonna start
at the core of pupusas,

which is masa harina.

It starts with masa
that is then dried out.



Masa is made from corn
that has been treated

with an alkaline solution,
and it transforms the corn.

It makes it more kind of
nutritionally available.

It changes it and helps it jell

so you can make tortillas out
of it and everything like that.

It is a marvel of indigenous
science that we even have masa.

So this is
a really special product,

and the dried version of it
is really readily available.

So that's what
we're gonna work with.

So I have 2 cups of masa harina.

I'm gonna add
1/2 teaspoon of salt.

I'm just gonna whisk in
this salt

so it's kind of nice
and distributed.

So now it's time for our water.

Now, a lot of times you see
recipes that call for cool water

or sometimes hot tap water.

The hotter the water,
as we find when we add it

to bread doughs
and things like that,

the more it's able to absorb
into the starch in the flour,

and you get a dough
that is oftentimes more hydrated

but easier to work with.

And so we're gonna lean
into that.

We're actually gonna use
boiling water

in this recipe.
-Oh, wow.

-So it's gonna basically allow
us to do a one-to-one ratio.

So we've got 2 cups
of masa harina.

We're gonna use 2 cups of water.

It's gonna make it
really nice and hydrated.

But you see,
it won't be super tacky

because we've heated
that water up.

And we're gonna do
a few tricks throughout

to make this
just a little bit easier

for a novice pupusa maker

to work with
a little bit more easily.

-Okay.
-So we're gonna add
our hot water here.

I'm also gonna add
a teaspoon of veg oil,

just a little bit
of richness to it.

And then I'm just gonna stir
to combine.

-Mmm!
-Doesn't that smell good?

-It smells so good.
-And that's a huge part of that

treating with an alkaline
process, that nixtamalization.

It adds so much
more flavor to it.

The reason that, like,
corn chips taste like anything

or tortillas taste like anything

is because of that
really cool step.

And then once I see
no dry pockets, I will stop.

It still has a little
hydrating to do.

About 20 minutes' rest will
really tighten it up even more.

It's gonna be nicer to work
with, a little less sticky.

So I'm just gonna cover
and set this aside.

While that is resting,
we can come over here

and talk about our cheese.

We're gonna kind of mimic
a cheese

that is traditionally used
in El Salvador called quesillo.

And if you can find quesillo,
absolutely go for it.

You're gonna look
for 10 ounces of it.

We're gonna mimic it
here with --

starting with 2 ounces
of Cotija cheese,

which is a Mexican cheese.
-Mm-hmm.

-It's salty.
It's got really nice funk to it.

It's a little bit drier.
It's not a great melting cheese.

I'm gonna use
our food processor here

to get it down to, like,
a fine sand consistency.

-Okay.
-Takes about 20 seconds.

This is gonna be, like,
pebble it up.

-Okay.
[ Food processor whirring ]

-Great, so you can see
we've got it down

to fine sand consistency,
but we need the meltiness,

and for that we're gonna
go with Monterey Jack.

It's super mild,

but it's a young cheese,
so it melts beautifully.

And the combination
is gonna be really nice.

And we're gonna go
for another 30 seconds

till it looks kind of like
a wet oatmeal mixture.

Awesome.
This looks perfect.

It's gonna be really easy
to form into balls,

and then those
are gonna be really easy

to stuff into the pupusas.

So that's -- we're kind of
helping ourselves out there.

So I'm just gonna form this
into eight cheese balls.

-These are just the portions
of cheese

that are gonna go
into each pupusa.

-Exactly. Yeah.

It just makes life
a little bit easier

to have it completely done.

They definitely
don't need to be perfect.

So we will finish up
the rest of these.

We'll have eight cheese balls.

And then it'll be time
to move on to the next.

So while our dough continues
to rest and hydrate,

we're gonna work on the curtido.

So this is, traditionally,
an actual fermented preparation,

but you see a lot of recipes

that are more
the quick pickle style,

and that's what
we're gonna do today.

We're gonna start
with apple cider vinegar.

I have a cup.
I have 1/2 cup of water.

A real classic pickling
kind of mixture here.

-Mm-hmm.
-And then I've got a tablespoon

of sugar for some sweetness.

And 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt.

And I'll just
whisk this together.

That's dissolved in there,
ready to go.

So what's so great
about this curtido

is, you know, pupusas are gonna
be, like, cheesy, crispy, rich,

and this is crunchy, acidic,

just really
that perfect balance to it.

So we're gonna start
with cabbage.
-Mm-hmm.

-I have a half a head
of cabbage here.

And what I like to do
is take out the core first here.

So you can just pop
that out like that.

I like to peel it into
kind of manageable slices

that you can flatten.
-Yeah. That's what I like to do.

-That's always the name
of the game.

Flat surface,
stability is so key.

This way you can
really flatten it down.

And then I just like
to go to town on it.

You don't have to go this thin.
You can go thicker.

This is such a strong mixture.
It'll totally soften it.

It's not a big deal at all.

Beautiful.
So we've got our cabbage.

Transfer this right over to
our beautiful pickling liquid.

-Nicely done.
-Next up, we have an onion.

We're gonna do
the same thing here.

We want nice, thin slices.
-Mm-hmm.

I notice you're going
with the onion grain.

-Yeah, I like --

You could definitely
go either way here.

You know, we're not cooking it,
so I'm not --

I'm not trying to get it
to fall apart.

Want a little bit
more bite to it.

Keeping it pole to pole
this way,

have a little bit more
integrity, which is nice.

-Also prettier.
-Yeah, I agree.

-Nicely done, sir.
-Thank you.

Transfer this over here,
as well.

Next up, we're gonna do
a little carrot

for some nice color and crunch.

For that, I'm going do
a nice little shred on it.

-Okay.
-Makes quick work of it.

That goes into our bowl.
Beautiful color.

And then finally veg-wise,
a jalapeño.

And we want it stemmed
and seeded.

We don't want to be too spicy.

Obviously,
if you want more spice,

add the ribs, add the seeds.

I'm gonna try
and take off the skin

and a little bit of the ribs

but leave all the other stuff
on the inside.

-Like you would a bell pepper,
I see people do that with.

-Exactly.
-I've actually never seen anyone

do this with a jalapeño.

This is fun to watch.

-And you can lay it down.
This last cut here.

-Huh!
-And take that off. So there --

-I really like that method.

-That's your spicy core
right there.

So as much as you want

you can mince up
and throw that in there.

So we're just gonna mince this.

I really like
to do a drag cut through it

because they'll stay in lines,

as opposed to, like, moving all
over the place with your knife.

And your crosscuts.

-Very nicely done.
-And into the bowl.

Thank you.

Alright, so the final addition
at this point

is a teaspoon of dried oregano.

It's a really key component
of a curtido.

-Okay.
-We're just gonna stir this,

make sure it's all nice
and evenly distributed.

This is gonna go into the fridge
for at least one hour

or up to 24 hours.

Okay, it is time for the
assembly portion of this recipe,

which I really love.

So if you watch Salvadoran cooks
do this

who have done this
their whole lives,

it's really, really fast
and it's all done by hand.

You grab some masa,
you put the cheese in,

you fold it around it,
you pat it out,

and you have these
beautiful pupusas.

If you're not as practiced
with it,

it can help to have a few things
to kind of guide you.

-That makes sense.
-And so we're gonna
do that here today.

This is a gallon ziplock bag.
You can use a quart one as well.

And we're gonna make
a four-inch circle on it.

I'm just using a bowl

that happens to be
four inches in diameter

and a permanent marker here.

And I'm just gonna draw
right around it.

-So you're making a template

for how you're gonna
press out the masa?

-Exactly, and at the same time,
you know,

we have this bag
that we can open up,

but we want it to be
a lot easier to work with.

So I'm actually gonna
take off this top here,

the little zipper lock,

and then I'm gonna
slit the sides, as well.

We're gonna keep
the bottom attached.

Alright, there we go.

-A little bit of arts
and crafts involved.

-Yeah, not my forte,
arts and crafts.

I'm gonna flip this over.

You want to make sure
that this is nice and dry

before you put it
on your countertop.

-Yes.
-Don't want any
permanent marker on there.

-Uh-huh.
-You flip it over
on the underside.

It's not gonna touch
the food at all.

So now let's take a look
at our dough here.

Now, this has rested, and it's
pretty much all the way there.

We're gonna knead it
for about 15 to 20 seconds.

You can see
it's a little crumbly.

It's gonna come together.

So I'm just gonna knead it
right here in the bowl.

And you can see some wet spots
and some dry spots.

-Yeah.
-You want to get that
all kind of incorporated.

-That dough looks beautiful.
-Yeah.

So this feels really good to me.

But there's a nice check
that we can do to make sure

that we have
the right hydration level.

I'm just gonna make kind of
a golf-ball-sized piece here

and press it down until it's
about a quarter inch thick.

And if I have really big cracks,
like quarter-inch cracks,

I'm gonna add a little more
moisture to it.

And I do have
some decent-sized ones,

so I'm gonna add a little bit,
kind of 2 teaspoons at a time,

until you get to
the place you want.

I think this probably
just needs 2 teaspoons.

-Okay.
-Beautiful.

So you can see we had
a tiny little crack there,

but for the most part,
it's totally smooth.

-Okay.
-So we're good to go.

What we're gonna do is
divide this into eight pieces.

Gonna cut this in half.

And then with the two sides,

I just find it easiest
to shape them into a little log

so I can really see
what I'm doing.

-It's still warm.
-And it feels nice, right?

-Oh, yeah.
-Yeah.

-This is like a spa treatment.

-And then once you get there,
you know,

you're just going
right down the center

and then down the center
of each of those.

And that's how you get
eight equal pieces out of it.

Roll those into balls.

Awesome. So we're gonna
cover this with a damp towel.

Want to keep them
nice and moist.

Back to our beautiful
template here.

Gonna take one ball.

Goes right inside.

Kind of center it
in that circle there.

-Mm-hmm.
-This goes over the top.

-I love this method.

So, you can really see
what you're doing.

-And we're using a pie plate

so you can see right
through it, right?

So that's -- that's nice, too.
-Mm-hmm.

-Like, a tortilla press
is wonderful for this,

but you don't get to see
what you're doing exactly.

So I love this, and then
we're just pressing it out

kind of slowly here.

-No cracks.
-It's nice and flexible.

The starch is
in really good shape.

Gonna take one
of our cheese balls,

and then it's really simply
bringing it up,

almost like if
you're forming a dumpling.

-I was just thinking that.
-Yep.

And I just get it right around
there and then pinch closed.

It's a very forgiving dough.

The idea is to just really pinch
around it, smooth it out,

and then once you get
into a good shape,

you're gonna start rounding.

And would you mind
grabbing that water again?

-Sure.
-This is a really nice key, too,

is just get a little bit
of water on there.

Helps you totally
smooth that outside,

because if it's smooth here,
when we press it again,

we're not gonna have cracks.

-This looks beautiful.

So we go right back
into our form here.

Put this over the top.

I find if you press a little
slower, you get less cracking.

-Wow, that is fun to watch a
pupusa come together like that.

-Isn't it?
Then you can take your fingers.

You know,
if there's any little cracks,

you can seal them up like that.
-Mm-hmm.

-But that is a gorgeous
cheese-filled pupusa.

-Beautiful.
-So that goes back

on the tray here.

We'll keep that covered
and we'll finish up our eight

and then we'll be really close
to eating.

It is time to cook.

I have a 12-inch
nonstick skillet here.

I have a teaspoon of oil,
and I've been heating this

over medium-high heat.

The teaspoon of oil is really
just there to absorb heat

so we're not, you know,
dry heating a nonstick skillet,

which is not good.
-Right.

-And it's a good
visual indicator.

We can see that it's shimmering.

-Mm-hmm.
-So that's awesome.

Gonna use some paper towels
to wipe the skillet out.

Now, you can cook pupusas in oil

and you can cook them
in a dry skillet,

like a comal or a griddle.
-Mm-hmm.

-You get really different
results.

And you'll see
when you have a dry skillet,

you get little spotty browning.

You get more of this kind of
popcorn, toasty flavor to it,

whereas if you have
the oil in there,

you get more of a fried --

fried texture and flavor.
-Yeah.

-So it's what you want, but we
really like the spotty brown

and that kind of richness
that you get from that.

We did nice small pupusas.
These are four inches.

And it makes it really easy
to add four to a skillet here.

-Nice.
-So we're gonna go in here.

These are gonna cook
for about 2 to 4 minutes a side.

We're looking for spotty brown

and nice melty cheese
on the inside.

-Okay.

-Alright.
So I'm gonna flip these now.

You can see I got
a little bit of cheese

coming out of this one.
-[ Chuckles ]

-But I actually like that,
when a little cheese --

Oh, look at that
beautiful browning.
-Ooh!

-That cheese gets
really flavorful.

So I don't mind
if I have a little bit

of a drip on the side.

Alright.
-Those are beautiful.

We're gonna let these go
for another 2 to 4 minutes

until that second side
is nice and brown

and the cheese inside is melted.

So it's been about 3 minutes
on the second side,

and I can smell
really nice browning...

-Mm-hmm.
-...and I can see
really nice browning.

-Gorgeous.
-Gorgeous.

I'm gonna get our other four
out to our platter.

-I know what this means.
-What does it mean?

-It means that it's
getting close to my plate.

-It's getting very close
to your plate.

-I'm eager to taste these.
-Beautiful.

-Those are beautiful.

-So the final component
is our curtido.

I drained it, so we got off
some of that liquid

so it doesn't sog things out,

and then we've got
a cup of minced cilantro.

-That's a lot.
-It is a lot.

But it's gonna add
so much nice freshness to it.

And we'll just toss this
to distribute that cilantro.

-Oh, the smell of the cilantro,
the fresh smell of the pupusas.

You can smell that toasted masa.

-So good, right?
-I'm so ready.

-And then a little curtido.

And we've got
this lovely quick salsa.

-Mm-hmm, and you can find
that recipe on our website.

That is a beautiful plate.

-So many colors and textures.
-Mm-hmm.

-It's so dynamic.
-Alright.

You think if we break it open,
we'll get the cheese pull?

-Oh, we're gonna
get the cheese pull.

-Alright.
I kind of want to just do this.

-Just get in there
and cheese pull.

-Yeah. Oh-ho-ho-ho!
-Oh, it's beautiful.

That's awesome.
-Yes!

Ohh. Alright.

-Dig in. Yeah.

So that Monterey Jack gives you
that beautiful stretch,

and you'll see that Cotija's
really flavorful.

-Mm-hmm. Alright, a little
curtido, a little salsa.

Mmm!

Mm-hmm.
-Mmm.

-That toasted flavor of the masa
and that cheese is perfection.

-It's so good,
and it's super-moist dough

because we added -- you know,
we were able to add

so much more water to it
than you normally would see.

-It's a simple combination
of flavors,

but they are
so perfect together.

Salsa's nice, but this curtido
is where it's at.

I love how finely
you shredded the cabbage.

Also, that little bit
of vinegar,

a little bit of brightness.

-Yeah, it's just
perfect balance.

-Mm-hmm. Mmm!

Mmm-mmm-mmm!

Dan, these are delicious.

And thank you for breaking down
exactly how to make pupusas.

-My pleasure.

-So if you want to make pupusas,
start by making fresh masa,

using masa harina
and boiling water.

Use a combination of Cotija

and Monterey Jack cheese
for the filling.

And cook them in a dry
nonstick skillet.

From "America's Test Kitchen,"

a foolproof recipe
for pupusas con curtido.

♪♪

-If you like your drinking water
a little on the bubbly side,

well, then a home soda maker
might be just for you.

And Adam's here to tell us which
one was the top of our ratings.

-I feel like you were speaking
directly to me, Bridget.

I live and die
by my home soda maker.

-Little bubbly, huh?
-Love the bubbly.

I feel good about using
fewer plastic bottles.

I feel really good about not
lugging plastic bottles around.

-True.
-And, in fact,

you can save money.

If you carbonate your own water,

it can be about 50 cents
per liter,

whereas if you're buying bottles
of carbonated water,

it can be anywhere between
a buck and 3 bucks per liter.

-So it adds up. Yeah.
-It does.

We have seven different
soda machines here.

The price range was about $72
to $219, is what we paid.

-Big range.
-Big range.

Two of them -- these two
right here -- are automatic.

They're electric.
You have to plug them in.

-Gotcha.

-Most of the machines
use a CO2 canister.

It fits really easily in there.
They're not hard to install.

And one of these will carbonate

between 30
and 60 liters of water...

-Wow.
-...depending on the level
of carbonation.

One of them uses packets
of citric acid

and sodium bicarbonate
instead of that cartridge.

-So you get a little
chemical reaction.

-Exactly.
-Okay.

-These two were the models
that used carbonation caps

in addition
to the carbonation cartridges.

-Mm-hmm. Okay.

-Again, a couple of extra steps
involved there

in terms of carbonating
the water --

not a deal-breaker,
but other ones were easier.

Also, on this model,
you'll note that the bottle

is a little bit taller
than some of the other ones.

-Right.
-Most of these are

plastic bottles
around one liter in size,

except for that gray one
in front of you,

which was the only one
with a glass bottle.

-Interesting.
-This one was a little taller,

and some testers found it
a little more difficult

to navigate it
in and out of a fridge.

-Right.
-So they didn't like it
for that reason.

All the other ones
worked really well,

and they had different benefits,

and testers found reasons to
recommend four of these models.

-Okay.
-The best overall machine...

-Right.
-...the easiest to use,

the best choice for most people
was this one.

It's the $83 SodaStream Fizzi.

It's small and compact
and sturdy.

The quality of the soda water
was wonderful.

-Great.

-If you want to take
the guesswork

out of your carbonation
and have an automatic machine,

this is
the SodaStream One Touch.

And it was $127.
-Okay. Fabulous.

-If you are trying
to steer clear of plastic

and want to go for the model
with the glass bottle...

-Okay.
-...that's the big gray one

in front of you.
-Ahh.

-That is the SodaStream
Aqua Fizz for $154.

-All SodaStream so far.
-So far.

But there's one more.

If high style is your jam,
Bridget, and I happen to know,

that chrome bottle on the end,

that is the Aarke Carbonator 3.

It worked really well.
It's a manual model.

It was the most expensive one
at $219.

And it looks like
every penny of it.

It looks great.
-It is gorgeous.

And it seems like
there's a winner for everyone.

-Indeed.
-But if you want to get

the best overall winner,
it's the SodaStream Fizzi,

and you can buy it for $83.

♪♪

Today we're making yuca,
also known as manioc or cassava.

Now, yuca is a starchy root

that comes from a woody shrub
from South America.

It's enjoyed the world over.

Lots of different cuisines have
adopted it and for good reason.

It's got a substantial
and compact texture

that is unbeatable.

Now, Elle's here,

and she's gonna show us one
of her favorite ways to make it.

-Bridget, I've had yuca
made so many different ways

around the world,
and it's never done wrong.

Today we're gonna fry it.

-That is my favorite way
to eat it.

-Mine too.

So to start, all of the goodness
of the yuca is under this bark.

So we got a lot of prep
that we need to do.

I'm gonna start by taking off
about one inch of the ends.

-And yuca fights back.
-Oh, it does.

It puts up a good fight,
but it's worth it.

-It sure is.
-And then you're gonna cut it

into as many three-inch pieces
as it allows.

Now, I'm just gonna use
my sharp knife

to start to chip away
at this bark here.

So just going down
the sides like this.

Don't worry about getting it
perfect the first go-round.

We're gonna just get
the bark off this time

and then go around again
to get any parts

that aren't stark white.

Now that we've cut them into
halves, pop out the woody core.

I like to kind of start
a little dam and then scoop.

Just takes a little work.

Make myself a little dam there.

It almost wants to come out once
you get your spoon under there.

-It yields.
-Yes, it does.

Now that we have the core out,

we're gonna cut them
into 3/4-inch pieces.

-Okay.
-If you're in a crunch,

you can buy yuca frozen,

but it's always recommended
to use fresh yuca.

Okay, Bridget, we started
with 2 pounds of fresh yuca.

We peeled, cut, and cored it,

so it might be a little less
than that now,

but we're ready to boil, which
is our first step before frying.

-Okay.
-Okay.

I have 3 quarts of water
boiling here in a Dutch oven

and I have 1 teaspoon
of table salt.

And I'm just gonna add the yuca.

Bringing this
to a vigorous simmer

and letting it cook
for 20 to 25 minutes

helps to break down the enzymes,
makes it translucent and fluffy.

It's very important for frying.

Alright, Bridget,
it's been 25 minutes.

I'm gonna turn this off.

I know that these are ready

because I can pierce them
with a fork quite easily.

This is the tenderness
we were looking for.

-Alright, so we're done
with boiling.

-Yeah, we're done with boiling.

Let's just take it to the sink
and drain it.

-Okay.
-And then we'll dry it.

-There you go.
They smell great.

Now, boiled yuca are fine to eat
right now, though.

-Yeah, we can eat them now.

Or you can freeze them
or you can fry them.

Okay, I'm gonna lay these out
on this baking sheet

so that they can dry.

I'm gonna help them out by
patting them dry a little bit.

And it's very important that
we get these dry before frying

because water and oil
equals house fire.

-Yeah.
-Right? Nightmare.

So I'm just gonna pat
these nice and dry,

and then we can fry them.

Okay, Bridget,
so we're ready to fry.

We have 2 quarts
of vegetable oil

over medium-high heat
at 350 degrees.

We're gonna let it fry
for 6 to 8 minutes.

-Yeah, you definitely wouldn't
want to do this with wet yucas.

-No.
-Really good idea
that you dried them off.

-Yep.

-And this is vegetable oil or --
-Yes.

-You could use peanut oil,
probably, as well.

-You can, yeah.

Alright, we're all set.
6 to 8 minutes.

Bridget,
you know what time it is?

-I hope it's yuca fry time.
-It is yuca fry time.

It's been about 6 minutes.
These are done frying.

I'm just gonna use my spider
and pull them out of the oil,

putting them
on a lined sheet tray

so that they can drain off
some of the oil.

They look beautiful.
-They are gorgeous.

-They're golden brown.

This is what
we were looking for.

-And they look a little puffed,
which I love that.

-Oh, yeah. That means there's
a good surprise on the inside.

-Hope it's cash.
-[ Laughs ]

I think it's just gonna be
good, fluffy yuca,

but, you know,
that's good as cash, right?

-I will take that.
-Alright.

So I'm gonna season this
with a little bit of salt.

Now, I have had yuca
with a host of condiments.

I prefer it with
pickled red onions.

-Mm.
-And if you want to know

where you can find that recipe,
it's on our website.

Okay, so let's give these yuca
the design love they deserve.

Little food styling.

-They stay crisp, too.
-They do. They do.

-Mmm-mmm!

-This looks lovely.
I'm ready to eat it.

-Yes, please.

-Let me give you a few
of these good yuca fries here.

How's that for you?
-That looks fantastic.

-Great. Okay, I'm gonna
have a few myself.

-Mmm!

-Would you like
some pickled onions?

-I would love pickled onions.
-Okay, good.

-What a treat. I've never had it
with pickled onions.

I've had it with evaporated milk
and cheese and spices.

-That sounds insanely delicious.

-I am into the pickled onions.

-Oh.

[ Crunching ]

Mm-hmm, mm-hmm, mm-hmm, mm-hmm.

-That crust on the outside,
it's pillowy-soft,

but, boy, is it crunchy.

-Do you now see why the pickled
onion is the ideal condiment?

Adds a little sweetness
to that crunch.

-I love the vinegar, too,
of the pickled onions.

It's just -- It's great
to serve something vinegary

or tart with fried foods.

It just really
breaks through it.

-Yeah.

-And the inside is so creamy
and tender.

-I was just gonna say,
it's the best part.

That much crispness
with a short fry.

It was only like 6 minutes.
-Exactly.

Yeah, you could boil them
ahead of time, as you said.

-Yeah.
-And then fry them

right before people come over,
eat them all,

and then don't tell them
that you fried them.

-[ Laughs ]
-That's not selfish, is it?

-No, not at all.

It's self-care.

-It is self-care.
-It is self-care, yeah.

-Oh, thanks, Elle.

Well, to make fried yuca
at home,

cut peeled and cored yuca
into small wedges,

pre-boil the yuca
to tenderize them,

and then fry them
until nice and crisp.

And don't forget the salt
and pickled onions.

So from
"America's Test Kitchen,"

craveable
and so easy fried yuca.

you can get this recipe and all
the recipes from this season,

turn around, they'd all be gone.

-Taking a risk with me
over here.