So how traditional is tapioca/yucca/casava flour?

[quietserena]

I came across a bag of Chebe mix and then realized that bread like that can easily be made from tapioca flour. But how traditional is this? How complete?

I can't seem to get much information on it online past the 'this is what you make tapioca pudding with'.

I'm GF and dying for some regularly made 'bread' and this is the first one that's sit well with me texture and taste wise...

[quietserena]

nothing?

I guess I gotta keep looking. Yay research! :

[snowbunny]

I've been wondering the same thing. I love me some tapioca pudding. : But I don't really think it's all that traditional, hopefully someone can allay my fears.

[tanyalynn]

I think whole tapioca flour is pretty traditional in some regions, but in my gf baking, I just use tapioca starch, which I think is just part of the flour (and the un-nutritious part at that).

But there are regions where cassava is a major part of the diet.

[quietserena]

The good news is that tapioca starch and flour are the same thing. I learned this much in my research at least.

I'm getting the idea it's just the cassava tuber, ground and dried. Which doesn't make it perfect but at least it's not just a part of something else like corn starch...

I need to think this through.

In the mean time, i'm enjoying my homemade pao de quiejo.: Even if it is somewhat unauthentic cause i used shredded mozz for the cheese. Here's the recipe. Though, frankly, I made it more like what Chebe mixes call for - only added enough milk to have everything stick. No more than 1/2 cup, I don't think. I warmed the butter in the microwave, added the starch and the cheese and the salt and then added enough milk for the dough to be doughlike.

[tanyalynn]

Really? Tapioca starch is a whole food? Clearly ground and processed, but wow, I am surprised (and I feel a bit less guilty about the bread I make!). Someone just a few days ago told me that cassava (sp?) was a staple, I thought in some parts of south Asia IIRC.

Ground and dried tubers would have less issues than, say, bean flours or grain flours (depending on how you treat the grains, I mean). You've clearly put more thought and reading into this than I, I am just feeling better about the stuff.

[Pookietooth]

I read awhile back it's a traditional African food (that's being replaced by wheat flour, bleached of course). But not sure how far back it goes there.

[quietserena]

I have to admit, I don't seem to have any issues with tapioca in general. That's really why I wanted to find out what the deal was.

Here's more info:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tapioca

Weird, last time I checked wikipedia, there waas nearly no info on tapioca. Oh and apparently, it's spelled yuca which is different from yucca. And cassava, not casava. (that was just to satisfy my inner spelling pedant...)