Escondidinho de Carne Seca

Ingredients

• 600 g carne seca (dried salted beef)
• 1.2 kg cassava, peeled
• 250 ml whole milk
• 80 g butter, plus extra for the dish
• 200 g requeijão or cream cheese
• 2 onions, finely chopped
• 6 garlic cloves, chopped
• 2 tomatoes, chopped
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 150 g queijo coalho or mozzarella, grated
• 1 bunch spring onions, sliced
• Black pepper and a little nutmeg

Before you cook

• Cut the carne seca into large pieces and soak them in cold water for six hours, changing the water four times.
• Split the peeled cassava, remove the woody core and cut it into chunks.
• Heat the oven to 200C and butter a deep baking dish.

Steps

1. Drain the carne seca, put it in a pressure cooker with fresh water to cover and cook it for 25 minutes under pressure.
2. Release the pressure, drain the meat and let it cool enough to handle.
3. Shred the meat finely with two forks, discarding any fat or gristle.
4. Put the cassava in a pot of unsalted water and boil it for 30 minutes, until falling apart.
5. Drain the cassava well and pass it through a ricer or mash it while hot.
6. Warm the milk, then beat it into the cassava with the butter and half the requeijão until the puree is smooth and thick.
7. Season the puree with black pepper and a grating of nutmeg.
8. Heat the olive oil in a frying pan and cook the onions for six minutes, until golden.
9. Add the garlic and tomatoes and cook them for four minutes.
10. Stir in the shredded meat and fry it for five minutes so the edges crisp.
11. Take the pan off the heat and fold through the spring onions and the remaining requeijão.
12. Spread the meat over the base of the buttered dish in an even layer.
13. Cover it completely with the cassava puree and smooth the top with a fork.
14. Scatter over the grated cheese and bake for 25 minutes, until browned and bubbling.