Brazilian recipe

Escondidinho de Carne Seca

Name: Escondidinho de Carne Seca
Prep time: 35 min
Cook time: 55 min
Total time: 1 h 30 min
Yield: 6
Cuisine: Brazilian cuisine
Ingredients: 1000 g cassava, peeled and cut into chunks; 1800 ml water, for boiling the cassava; 60 g unsalted butter; 250 ml whole milk; 10 g fine salt, divided; 600 g desalted cooked carne seca, shredded; 30 ml bottled butter or neutral oil; 180 g red onion, thinly sliced; 3 garlic cloves, minced; 120 g red bell pepper, thinly sliced; 150 g ripe tomatoes, chopped; 15 g parsley and scallion, chopped; 100 g cream cheese or requeijão; 100 g queijo coalho or Parmesan, grated; 20 ml olive oil, for the baking dish

A comforting casserole of seasoned shredded dried beef hidden beneath a creamy cassava purée and a browned layer of queijo coalho and Parmesan.

Northeastern Brazil

Prep: 35 min
Cook: 55 min
Total: 1 hr 30 min
Servings: 6

Escondidinho with golden cassava purée and shredded dried beef — **Real finished-dish photograph**Photograph by Carlos Lopes from Uberaba-MG, BrasilSource page · Original file · CC BY 2.0Cropped, resized, and compressed by Recipe Nest Vault.

Ingredients

1000 g
cassava, peeled and cut into chunks
1800 ml
water, for boiling the cassava
60 g
unsalted butter
250 ml
whole milk
10 g
fine salt, divided
600 g
desalted cooked carne seca, shredded
30 ml
bottled butter or neutral oil
180 g
red onion, thinly sliced
3
garlic cloves, minced
120 g
red bell pepper, thinly sliced
150 g
ripe tomatoes, chopped
15 g
parsley and scallion, chopped
100 g
cream cheese or requeijão
100 g
queijo coalho or Parmesan, grated
20 ml
olive oil, for the baking dish

Method

01
Boil the cassava
Cover the cassava with water and simmer for 20 minutes until a knife slides through easily. Drain, remove the woody central fibres and mash while hot.
Cooking-step illustration, not a photograph
02
Make the purée
Warm the milk with the butter and 4 g salt. Beat it into the mashed cassava, then fold in the cream cheese until smooth and spreadable.
Cooking-step illustration, not a photograph
03
Sauté the dried beef
Heat the bottled butter in a skillet. Cook the onion and garlic for 5 minutes until soft, add the pepper and tomato for 5 minutes, then fold in the shredded beef and cook for 5 minutes more.
Cooking-step illustration, not a photograph
04
Season the filling
Turn off the heat and fold in the parsley and scallion. Taste and add the remaining 6 g salt only if the beef needs it.
Cooking-step illustration, not a photograph
05
Assemble the casserole
Heat the oven to 200°C and oil a baking dish. Spread half the cassava purée, add all the beef filling, then cover with the remaining purée and smooth the top.
Cooking-step illustration, not a photograph
06
Top and bake
Scatter the grated queijo coalho or Parmesan over the surface and bake at 200°C for 20 minutes until bubbling at the edges and browned on top.
Cooking-step illustration, not a photograph
07
Rest and serve
Rest the casserole for 10 minutes so the layers settle. Spoon out portions showing both the creamy cassava and the savoury beef centre.
Cooking-step illustration, not a photograph

Practical notes

Tips

Measure starches and dairy by weight, and let the hot liquid fully hydrate the starch before shaping or baking.
Preheat the oven and use the texture cue in the method; a browned outside can hide a raw or unset centre.

Common mistakes

Adding eggs to a piping-hot starch mixture can scramble them and leave lumps.
Opening the oven early can collapse a delicate rise before the crust has set.

Substitutions

Tapioca starch is the defining ingredient in pão de queijo; do not replace it with wheat flour if you want its chewy structure.
A blend of dry, well-flavoured cheeses can replace Brazilian cheese; avoid very wet cheese that loosens the dough.

Storage

Cool leftovers promptly and refrigerate within 2 hours at 0–4°C for up to 3 days. Reheat only the portion needed until piping hot throughout.

Cultural context

Escondidinho is especially associated with northeastern Brazilian home cooking. Cassava appears under several regional names—mandioca, aipim or macaxeira—while the filling may change from dried beef to chicken or seafood.

Sources and photo credit

This standardized method was independently rewritten after cross-checking the references below. Recipe Nest Vault does not claim that the credited photographer cooked from this exact version.

Recipe references

Mandioca com Carne Seca (3549569788).jpg — Photograph by Carlos Lopes from Uberaba-MG, Brasil; CC BY 2.0.

Step illustrations: Original illustrations created by Recipe Nest Vault with OpenAI image_gen.

Back to Brazilian recipes

Escondidinho de Carne Seca

Ingredients

Method

Boil the cassava

Make the purée

Sauté the dried beef

Season the filling

Assemble the casserole

Top and bake

Rest and serve

Sources and photo credit

Recipe references

More Brazilian recipes

Feijoada

Moqueca Baiana

Pão de Queijo