Simply Chaotic or Chaotic Simplicity

So I tried this new food the other day...called "Yuca Root" (pronounced "yoo-ca"...not to be confused with Yucca plant...different thing altogether. Anyway...I found it in a store called Lidl. I did have to "google it" to find out how to prepare it and what it was used for...and it seemed safe and interesting. The articles did mention that the skin had to be taken off because it contained cyanide!! So I did have some second thoughts at first...like stories you hear about that famous "blow fish" or whatever that has to be prepared a certain way, or it's poisonous? My mind was playing tricks on me...but I decided to give it a try anyway. 
So it is very popular in places like the Caribbean and the Central/south Americas. It's a starchy food that I would compare potatoes maybe, but more sticky and thick. When I was cooking it, (I chose to boil it)...it reminded me a lot of rutabagas or turnips. To make a long story short...I ate mine with some garlic and pepper, and a drizzle of Olive Oil. It was good...

 but very filling. My daughter looked up the nutritional content...and it is very high in calories and carbs...so a "no-go" for someone watching their calories and carbs! It is a food of sustainability in the countries where it is popular, of course. Will I try it again? Probably not...it took a lot of prep time to get that hard tough skin off. Once I got down to the flesh, there didn't seem to be much left of the vegetable itself...but I only got one in case I didn't like it or chickened out before making it!! 

 

As you can see from the pictures...the skin is very tough, it takes a good knife to get it off, which I didn't have...but I managed. The picture on the right is mine!! 
None the less, I can now say that I have tried "Yuca Root"...and can confidently say that the only time I will eat it again...is if I am somewhere that knows how to prepare it properly! But I survived my impending cyanide death just fine...and have lived to see another day of trying new things!! Cooking is a fun pass time, and I am always open to unusual foods...but this one was just a little too much work for the end result!! That is the very reason I do not make Butternut Squash very often...because it is too hard to cut!! (Perhaps I just need a better knife collection to hone my culinary skills)!! 

Here's to my next adventure in the culinary/foodie world!! Cheers!