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Dominica Gourmet

Dominica Gourmet

A blog about foods from Dominica

How to make cassava bread

September 28, 2020

How to make cassava bread

How to make cassava bread

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Cassava, or as it’s commonly known in Dominica, manioc, was one of the main Carib Indians’ (Kalinago) staples. The cassava plant’s root is the most valuable part of the plant. The Caribs would often use this root in various ways, including farine, which a byproduct of cassava and flatbread called cassava bread.

Cassava bread is very filling, served as a meal on its own, or used with other food items. Additionally, there are many great benefits of cassava bread. This bread is fat-free and rich in fiber. It has a long shelf life of up to 8 months and a great option for wheat.

How is cassava bread made?

When I was growing up in Dominica, a small cassava plant was located on Back Street, next to my grandparent’s house, in my village of Thibaud.

I remember witnessing the workers peel the cassava, grate the pieces on a large grater. It would go through a manual extraction process, where the liquid was extracted. The residue would then be shaped in a flatbread shape and placed in a large heavy pan, where it was heated with a wide open fire below the container. As you’ve noticed, this was a very involved process that needed lots of attention.

Creating cassava bread in such an authentic way is exceptionally complicated and something that I’m unable to do at home. Instead, with the advice of my sister, Marva, in Toronto, who’s often watched my mom make cassava bread, I’ve added some store-bought cassava flour and water, and tried to recreate this childhood favorite.

View recipe below. I’ve slightly adjusted it a bit to get my bread into a round shape.

Here’s how to make cassava bread

I used my cassava bread to make smoke herring and codfish sandwiches. Here’s my recipe for codfish bulljaw.

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Cassava bread

Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 8 mins
Cook Time 15 mins
Course Appetizer, Breakfast, Main Course

Equipment

  • Cast iron griddle (heavy)

Ingredients
  

  • 3 cups farine set aside ½ cup
  • 3 cups water
  • 1 cup cassava flour
  • salt I didn't use salt for this recipe since I was adding salt fish. It also depends on your intake level. You can also use sugar, if you prefer a less savory option.

Instructions
 

  • Mix dry ingredients in a bowl
  • Add water and mix well
  • When mixture has achieved a doughy like consistency, roll into little balls
  • Roll balls with the palm of your hands, and flatten slightly like s disk
  • In a plate, cover balls with the rest of the farine to create a very course texture
  • Place on a hot heavy cast iron griddle pressing down to flatten with and roast on both sides until lightly brown
  • Remove and serve or add your special accompaniment

Video

Notes

I didn’t add salt this time since I was using salt fish and smoked herring. My sister, Marva, who gave me this recipe, usually adds raisins, shredded coconut, ginger and other ingredients. 

in Appetizers, Breakfast, Dinner, Snacks, Vegetarian

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Comments

  1. Doris says

    May 30, 2021 at 7:07 pm

    This looks like a great recipe, thank you. Question: What is farine? I know in French it is flour but in your recipe it may be something else? T I A for clarifying.
    Doris

    Reply
    • admin says

      July 21, 2021 at 6:56 pm

      Doris, thanks for your question. It’s a byproduct of cassava. It’s not very fine, a bit coarse.

      Reply
  2. Amanda says

    June 16, 2021 at 1:10 pm

    This is excellent! Thank you for sharing. I enjoy reading the stories and I am so excited to try out each recipe.

    Reply
    • admin says

      July 21, 2021 at 6:39 pm

      Hi Amanda! Happy that you enjoy the stories behind the recipes. All the best trying out the recipes.

      Reply
  3. Miguelito says

    May 9, 2022 at 1:23 am

    Hi (sorry I don’t see your name),
    This recipe is fascinating. I’m from the Dominican Republic where we have a similar type of bread, but less fluffy, that we call casabe. It’s always so nice to see how it seems we all have variations of similar dishes in the Caribbean. I’m leaving you a recipe of our version (I think it’s a bit of an acquired taste) for your enjoyment and comparison: https://www.dominicancooking.com/13313/casabe

    Also, I’m going to make your codfish bulljaw. It looks very good! It’s similar to a codfish stew we make, but we don’t add the scallions, curry or hot peppers. This is going to be interesting!

    Thanks!

    Reply
    • admin says

      October 1, 2022 at 1:55 pm

      Hi,

      How was it? Hope you enjoyed your bulljaw. 🙂

      Reply

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Meet Mayma

Sakafete! Growing up in Dominica, food was central to socializing and in abundance. Cooking with my family was one of the highlights of my youth. We grew our produce and raised livestock, which often made it to our kitchen table. With my mother and grandmother's guidance, I discovered my passion for cooking at age 9. We used lots of verbal recipes then. Today, I share those culinary experiences with my children, using the fundamentals of Dominican cooking and making it our own. I'm not a trained cook/chef, however, as I embark on my food journey, I invite you to experience foods from the Caribbean island of Dominica. Let's cook!
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