Farofa

July 6, 2017

Farofa - kvalifood.com

Farofa is a Brazilian side dish of toasted cassava flour (farinha de mandioca) cooked in rendered bacon fat and butter with onion and garlic. The flour toasts quickly into crunchy, savory crumbs that are spooned over rice, beans, grilled meat, or feijoada. The whole thing takes under 10 minutes.

Ingredients

Serves 4

130 g white cassava flour (farinha de mandioca)
2 strips bacon (~50 g), diced
2 tbsp butter (~28 g)
1/2 medium onion (~50 g), finely diced
2 cloves garlic (~10 g), minced
salt, to taste
black pepper, to taste
1 tbsp fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped (optional)

Directions

Place the diced bacon in a cold skillet over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the fat renders and the bacon begins to crisp (3-4 minutes).
Add the butter and let it melt into the bacon fat.
Add the onion and cook until soft and translucent (about 2 minutes).
Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds until fragrant.
Add the cassava flour all at once. Stir continuously and gently to coat the flour in the fat and toast evenly. Continue for 2-3 minutes until the flour turns lightly golden and smells nutty. Do not stop stirring - cassava flour burns quickly.
Season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat.
If using parsley, fold it in off the heat.
Serve warm or at room temperature alongside rice, beans, grilled meat, or feijoada.

Notes

The flour-to-fat ratio matters. Too little fat and the farofa will be dry and dusty. Too much and it becomes greasy. Bacon fat plus 2 tbsp butter is the right balance for 130 g flour.
Farofa completa: for an elaborated version, add 1 diced bell pepper and 1 grated carrot with the onion, and fold in 2 chopped hard-boiled eggs at the end.
Must use white cassava flour (farinha de mandioca), not tapioca starch or cornmeal.
Stores in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Reheat on the stovetop.