When we live in the countryside, but we've been adventurous with a variety of luxury food in the city, sometimes it can be difficult. We long for foods of various flavors, but that is no longer possible to have while in the countryside.
One thing we can do for sure. We have to explore the ingredients that are still available around us, then we turn them into something delicious. And another key to enjoying what we have, it is about gratitude.
Not necessarily what we have is owned by someone else, right? So, sometimes our mind asks for more, but we must become aware that what we have is enough.
Like the food ingredients, we have today. Our friends in other countries may not have about it either.
So this time I will explore the food menu from cassava. It's quite a bit difficult, but indeed tricky. One of them is to find good quality cassava that will have a soft flesh texture when cooked. That is the first task before processing it, because cassava grown or produced from the market, does not always have a good texture quality.
Before I share about the recipe ”BOILED CASSAVA WITH COCONUT MILK SAUCE I will invite you to find out how to choose good quality cassava. Stay tuned!
The main problem that makes cassava-based foods taste bad is the hard texture that makes cassava taste a bit bitter.
Unfortunately, we don't avoid that quality by looking at and touching the state of raw cassava before cooking. So, we really have to buy cassava from a trusted seller.
One more thing that I also just found out about the fact. The cassava tree whose leaves are taken to be eaten will make the cassava tube have a hard texture. That's why if we plant cassava to harvest the fruit, we should not take the leaves. I learned about this from my mother, as well as from the farmers around me. Do you guys know about this?
So you should also buy cassava in a special place for cassava plantations for fruit, not for cassava leaves.
After making sure we have cassava that will be soft in texture, it's now time to prepare the ingredients to make a sweet, also filling menu.
For sauces:
Peel the cassava, cut the cassava into small pieces, then wash thoroughly. Make sure you cut the cassava not too big or too small to make sure they will cook at the same time with the same texture.
After the cassava is cooked (but with a texture that is not too soft, then add sugar). And cook for a while until the sugar has combined.
Don't mix sugar when the cassava is not cooked, because it will cause the cassava texture to fail to become soft. So make sure you add sugar on time. Keep watching. :)
Here I serve boiled cassava with coconut milk sauce, also decorated with edible flowers (rosebuds). Beautiful, isn't it?
Indeed, this food looks very simple but has a deep and meaningful meaning for my life in the countryside. Cassava is my family's savior from hunger.
Starting from being served grilled, boiled, fried, steamed, and even made into chips, cassava is a cheap and easy-to-obtain source of food. Although unfortunately, cassava is considered a food for the poor in my area.
I still remember when I was teased by people in my village when my parents could only give us cassava, not other side dishes made from fish and chicken. But I enjoy those good times first and it made me strong and made me who I am today.
Never regret for our past as long as we continue to process and grow to be better than we were yesterday. Because our life is the present, not the past.
Whatever it is, enjoy it, be grateful, and never insult anything. If we want to be valuable, we should never despise anything. If we despise something, we are equal to it. So, from food, I learned a lot that from simplicity we learn to be wise and strong to survive in life.
All pictures taken with Iphone 11
Best Regards,
Anggrek Lestari
Anggrek Lestari is an Indonesian fiction writer who has published two major books. Now She is a full-time content creator. She has a goal to share life, poem, and food content that makes others happy and can get inspiration.
Make sure you follow her blog as well for some interesting discussions about life other than food.
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