Tutu

Gourmet's Adventures with Ruth: Season One: Yara Roberts' Brazil

Serves8
  • Active time:1 hr
  • Start to finish:2 hr
Adapted from The Brazilian Table, by Yara Castro Roberts and Richard Roberts
November 2009
Watch a preview of this Gourmet's Adventures with Ruth episode and it view its accompanying recipes. Plus, explore all episodes and more recipes from the show.

For black beans

  • 1 lb dried black beans, picked over
  • 3 crushed peeled garlic cloves
  • 1 Turkish or ½ California bay leaf
  • 2 teaspoon coarse kosher salt (or 1 tsp fine salt)

For tutu

  • 1/2 cup crushed peeled garlic cloves (about 1 ½ heads)
  • 2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt (or 1 tsp fine salt)
  • 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1/2 cup finely chopped onion
  • 1 cup manioc flour, preferably toasted

For sauce

  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 1 large red onion, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced lengthwise (1 ½ cups)
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 1/3 cup water
  • 2 tablespoons cider vinegar
  • 1/4 teaspoon coarse kosher salt (or 1/8 tsp fine salt)
  • 1/4 teaspoon Tabasco

Garnish

  • 2 boiled egg, quartered

Cook black beans

  • Rinse beans in a sieve with cold water, then transfer to a 4- to 5-quart pot with cold water to cover by 1 ½ inches. Bring to a boil and boil beans, uncovered, 10 minutes.
  • Drain beans then return to pot with enough fresh water to cover by 2 inches. Add crushed garlic, bay leaf, and salt and bring to a simmer. Simmer beans gently, partially covered, until tender, 50 minutes to 1¼ hours.
  • Pour beans through a sieve set over a bowl. Measure cooking liquid in a 1 quart measuring cup, adding enough water to measure 3 ½ cups. Return beans to pot, discarding bay leaf, and mash with a bean or potato masher adding 1 cup cooking liquid back to pot to make a soupy puree. Keep warm.

Make tutu

  • In a mortar with a pestle or using the edge and flat side of a large knife on a cutting board, mash garlic with coarse salt to a puree.
  • Heat oil in a small heavy skillet over medium heat until it shimmers, then add the onion-garlic puree and cook, stirring, 2 minutes. Add onion and cook, stirring until softened and garlic is golden, about 5 minutes more.
  • Stir garlic-onion mixture and 1 cup bean cooking liquid into black beans and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Pour about 1/3 cup manioc flour in a slow stream into pot, stirring constantly, then stir in about 1/3 cup bean cooking liquid. Continue adding remaining manioc flour and liquid until you have a thick but airy puree. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Keep warm, covered.

Make sauce

  • Heat oil in a small saucepan over medium heat until hot. Add onion and cook, stirring, until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in tomato paste and cook, stirring, 2 minutes more. Add water, vinegar, salt, and Tabasco and cook, stirring, 3 minutes more.

Serve tutu

  • Transfer tutu to a serving dish. Arrange hard-boiled eggs around perimeter and mound some of sauce in center. Pass remaining sauce.
Cooks' Note: Left over tutu keeps, covered and chilled, 3 days. Reheat in a 350°F oven in a baking dish, covered, until heated through, about 25 minutes.
Subscribe to Gourmet