Ancient flatbread makes a comeback in Cuba as crisis bites

Yahoo

06-05-2025

STORY: Cubans are turning to a dish from the distant past as the country experiences a dire economic crisis.
Historians say this simple flatbread, known locally as casabe, has been around for over a thousand years.
The dish only requires one ingredient: locally grown yucca root, also known as cassava.
In recent times casabe has mostly been relegated to field hands and outposts in the countryside.
But with imports and production of such basics as wheat flour, sugar and salt vastly reduced, some are giving the dish another look.
Yudisley Cruz is the co-founder of Yucasabi, a restaurant that seeks to promote the consumption of yucca-based products.
The small restaurant in touristy old Havana sells a single disc for about four cents, making it nutritious, delicious and affordable for both tourists and locals alike, Cruz said.
"In a food crisis like the one we are currently experiencing, we believe casabe can also help alleviate this situation. In addition to its tradition and cultural value, it is a food that goes well with everything, both savory and sweet dishes. These casabe cakes contain no fat or salt, are very easy to digest, gluten-free, and therefore suitable for people with gluten allergies, who now have another dish to choose from."
Casabe can be served alone or topped with any combination of onion, tomato, pork and garlic.
Cassava producer Julio Cesar Nunez says casabe's simplicity remains the flatbread's top selling point.
He says that historically, Indigenous people made it on stone using intense heat, before griddles came along and made production easier.