Try this easy recipe for Mogo Chips (Yuca Fries or Cassava Fries) & Bomb Sauce. Golden fried mogo chips with hot chilli ‘bomb sauce’, Indian East African style.
They’re similar to South American and Caribbean Yuca Fries, except there’s an optional sauce here to serve alongside. Mogo, also known as cassava or yuca is so tasty and simple to make.
These fries are…
- Easy to make
- Gluten free
- Easily veganized
- Spicy and flavourful
- Deep fryer, oven or air fryer friendly
Let’s make the best cassava fries of your life
They make for a great change from the usual potato fries. In fact, think of it as a more flavoursome and robust potato chip.
The outside is so crispy it’s almost flaky, and the inside is soft, with a starchy fluffiness. They go with practically everything, too.
What is mogo, cassava or yuca?
Cassava, also known as yuca, is a starchy root vegetable native to South America and is an important crop in tropical and subtropical regions around the world.
Cassava is treasured for its affordability and versatility. The starchy root can be boiled, mashed, stewed, roasted, barbecued and even pounded into flour for various cooking uses.
The Kenyan dessert, Malindi Halwa is made from cassava flour. The starch produces a sticky, stretchy dessert that’s flavoured with almonds and rose water.
Cassava can be used in many traditional dishes such as cassava fries, cassava cakes, and cassava bread. It can also be ground into a flour and used as a substitute for wheat flour in gluten-free baking.
It must always be cooked and never eaten raw.
Why so many different names?
All of the above names are correct. Since cassava is a root popular around the world, the name changes depending on local language.
I am British, with an Indian East African family background, so I call this vegetable ‘mogo’, which is a term derived from the Kiswahili word, ‘muhogo’.
It is commonly eaten across South America, the Caribbean, East Asia, East Africa, in parts of south Asia and in many island nations across the world.
What does cassava taste like?
What I love about cassava is its earthy flavour, which truly comes to life when you steam or boil it.
The aroma is so distinct, you’d know within a split second that someone is making bafelo mogo (boiled cassava in my native Gujarati language).
It reminds me both of the beautiful Mombasa sunshine and of eating as a family.
What is bomb sauce?
The bomb sauce is a spicy lemon butter with tonnes of flavour. Perfect for dipping.
My dad taught me how to make it and it’s so delicious. It’s the dip he and his siblings would enjoy them with when they were growing up in Kenya.
‘Bomu’ they called it in Kenya because it sounded close enough to ‘bomb’ when they were kids.
How to serve Mogo Chips (Yuca Fries or Cassava Fries) & Bomb Sauce
Serve these as an appetizer, side dish or snack. They need nothing more than what’s written in the recipe. Be sure to serve them hot!
How to cook mogo chips from frozen
Boil or steam the frozen mogo (cassava, yuca) prior to frying, roasting or barbecuing. It must be cooked thoroughly and luckily, it’s sturdy enough to withstand quite a bit of cooking.
Use a pressure cooker to reduce cook time, but do keep an eye on it.
- Frozen mogo will take around 20-30 minutes to cook with a boil method
- Frozen mogo chips will cook in the pressure cooker in around 15 minutes
- If you choose to steam frozen mogo, it will take approximately 35 minutes to cook through
How to test if mogo is cooked
Does a sharp knife slide in to the thickest part of the chip without resistance? If it does, you’re good to go.
If it doesn’t, cook the mogo chips a little longer. Of course, you could always just taste one to check!
Where to buy mogo chips
Buy bags of frozen mogo from any supermarket with an world food section, or from speciality African, South American, Caribbean or Asian stores.
Fresh cassava is available to buy in the produce section of such stores.
Popular mogo dishes
- Chilli Mogo (Indo-Chinese style)
- Garlic mogo
- Grilled mogo with chilli powder, lemon juice and salt (Mombasa Lighthouse style)
- Mogo Bhajiya
- Mogo Crisps (salted or with chilli and lemon)
Ingredients for Mogo Chips (Yuca Fries or Cassava Fries) & Bomb Sauce
- Mogo – also known as cassava, yuca or manioc. I buy it frozen.
- Butter – any salted butter will do
- Chilli powder – I use hot chilli powder but you can also use mild
- Lemon juice – freshly squeezed lemon juice is best
- Fresh coriander leaves – or dried oregano
- Oil – any oil suitable for deep frying
- Black pepper – freshly ground
- Salt
Step-by-step instructions for making Mogo Chips (Yuca Fries or Cassava Fries) & Bomb Sauce
1 – Boil or steam the mogo
Open the bag and put the mogo into a pot of salted water. Bring to the boil and cover. Cook for 25 minutes, or until very tender. Alternatively, you can steam the mogo chips.
2 – Allow the mogo to drain and dry
Drain in a colander. Around 15 minutes will do. Toss the mogo around to rough up the surface. This will give you crispy chips.
3 – Make the Bomb sauce
Mix butter, chilli powder, salt, lemon juice, coriander leaves and water. No need to cook this, just melt everything together.
4 – Fry the mogo chips
Deep fry the mogo chips until lightly golden. Do not over fry. Alternatively, air fry or pan fry. The colour and texture will not be as good as deep frying.
5 – Serve the mogo chips with Bomb sauce
Mogo Chips & Bomb Sauce recipe | How to make mogo chips | Indian East African mogo chips
Mogo Chips & Bomb Sauce
Try this easy recipe for golden fried mogo chips with hot chilli 'bomb sauce', Indian East African style. Mogo, also known as cassava or yuca is tasty and simple to make. Think of it as a more flavoursome and robust potato chip. The outside is so crispy it's almost flaky, and the inside is soft, with a starchy fluffiness. The bomb sauce is a spicy lemon butter with tonnes of flavour. Perfect for dipping. Serve as an appetizer, side dish or snack.
Ingredients
For the Mogo Chips
- 1kg frozen mogo chips (or fresh, peeled and cut into thick chips)
- Oil for deep frying
- 1/2 tsp salt, plus more for lightly salting the water the mogo will boil in
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
For the Bomb Sauce
- 50g salted butter
- 2 tsp hot chilli powder
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp chopped coriander
- 1 tbsp water
- 3/4 tsp salt
Instructions
- Boil the mogo chips in plenty of lightly salted water for about 30 minutes. They should be very soft but still holding their shape. If you have a pressure cooker, you can do this in around 15 minutes.
- Drain in a colander and allow to stand so the chips steam dry, about 20 minutes. Once cool, toss the chips in the colander several times to rough up the outer surface. This step will ensure that they are very crispy.
- Heat the oil in a large pot suitable for deep frying. Once the oil reaches 180°C/355°F, carefully lower the mogo chips into the oil, a few at a time. Do not overcrowd the pan by frying too many chips at once. Always fry in small batches. Turn the mogo chips often.
- After 7-8 minutes, the mogo chips will be slightly golden and ready. Lift the chips out of the oil using a perforated spoon or frying spider. Drain an a colander with a plate underneath, or on a plate lined with kitchen towel. Note that the mogo can turn hard if left in the oil too long.
- Sprinkle the mogo chips with salt and pepper and toss well.
- To make the Bomb sauce: Melt the butter in a small saucepan. Add the chilli powder, water and salt. Stir well until everything has melted together. Switch the heat off and then add the lemon juice and coriander.
- Serve the mogo chips hot with Bomb sauce.
Notes
- Make the Bomb sauce ahead of time and store in the fridge until required.
- If using fresh cassava, you'll need to peel and chop it. Soak in cold water for 15 minutes before draining. Boil in a pot of fresh, cool water. It's best to start any vegetables that grow underground in cool water, bringing it to a gradual boil. They cook better this way.
- You can also air fry or roast the boiled mogo. Coat generously in oil to prevent the mogo from drying out.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 350Trans Fat: 0g
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With love and mogo chips,
Sanjana
Vicky
Wednesday 3rd of July 2024
Made this today - super easy and very tasty! I used mogo chips which I'd frozen from fresh, boiled until thoroughly cooked and then air fried. They came out really well
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Dean
Friday 23rd of June 2023
Mind blowing with the sauce. So so morrish.