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    Home > Blog > Appetizers > Baked Yucca Fries with Grilled Banana Ketchup

    Baked Yucca Fries with Grilled Banana Ketchup

    by Jenny Park · Published: Jun 29, 2012 · Modified: Aug 7, 2020

    Jump to Recipe

    Baked Yucca Fries with Grilled Banana KetchupGrilled bananas for grilled banana ketchup.

    Hi All! So by now I think you’ve all noticed that we get a lot of our food inspiration from all around the world and we have a little thing for international cuisine. I think there’s something so refreshing as well as fascinating about cultural gastronomy with no particular emphasis on “fine foods”. Growing up I was lucky enough to travel to a number of places around the world because my parents loved (and still do love) to travel; neither having been able to do much traveling themselves while growing up, made it a priority to take my sister and I to as many places possible so we could explore the world from an early age [just one of hundreds of reasons I will be forever grateful for my wonderful and inspiring parents].

    Another thing about my parents, which I LOVE, is that whenever they’re in a foreign country they’re all about eating where the locals eat. We have travelled great lengths for a good authentic meal….one in particular was a little trip to Mexico years and years ago. My parents had befriended a cab driver who pretty much became our unofficial food guide that whole trip…it was awesome. On our last night we were all in the mood for super fresh grilled fish, our cabbie assured us he had a great place in mind, but that it was a bit of a drive out of town. As long as it was going to be super fresh and tasty, the Park family was game. 4 hours, 1 mountain drive and 1 flat tire later we fiiinnnaaallllyyyy made it to this tiny shack on the beach. Exhausted, grumpy and hungry we ordered pretty much everything on the menu. The last dish that came out was the grilled fish we were all waiting for. It was moist, flaky, flavorful, and unexpectedly covered in this sort of sweet and smoky barbecue type sauce. That dish alone turned all of our moods around and to this very day we still talk about that amazing fish slathered in that even more amazing sauce. I never had a chance to ask them how they made their sauce, but the first time I tasted banana ketchup was the first time I tasted something that even somewhat reminded me of that memorable meal in Mexico.

    I made my own version of banana ketchup, using grilled bananas, in attempt to recreate the sauce I once had. I wasn’t exactly successful and I don’t think I’ll ever be able to replicate that very special sauce. What I did end up with though was quite a tasty and unique little ketchup that’s great on a ton of things! We’ve paired ours with some baked yucca fries today…why? No reason really….I just love yucca, especially in fry form! Don’t be intimidated by the long list of ingredients, because the recipe itself is quite easy! Enjoy!
    xx Jenny

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    Baked Yucca Fries with Grilled Banana Ketchup

    Baked Yucca Fries with Grilled Banana Ketchup

    5 from 1 vote
    PRINT RECIPE Pin Recipe
    RECIPE BY Teri & Jenny
    Prep Time: 20 minutes mins
    Cook Time: 1 hour hr 45 minutes mins
    Servings: 4

      INGREDIENTS  

    grilled banana ketchup

    • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
    • 5 ripe bananas
    • ½ medium yellow onion, chopped
    • 4 garlic cloves
    • 1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
    • 1 cup pitted and chopped dates
    • 1 tablespoon minced thyme
    • 2 ½ cups water
    • 2 cups apple cider vinegar
    • ¾ cup light brown sugar
    • ¼ cup molasses
    • ¼ cup honey plus 2 tablespoon
    • 2 ½ tablespoons brandy (optional)
    • 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
    • 2 teaspoon crystalized ginger
    • 2 teaspoons salt
    • 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
    • ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
    • pinch ground all-spice
    • pinch ground nutmeg

    yucca fries

    • 1 pound yucca root, peeled and cut (into 2”x ¼” sticks)
    • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
    • salt and pepper to taste

      INSTRUCTIONS  

    • For banana ketchup: Preheat grill or grill pan on high. Brush each banana (with its peel still intact) with oil. Grill bananas on each side for about 5 minutes. Remove from grill and allow bananas to cool.
    • Peel bananas and break up into chunks and place into a blender. Add onion, garlic, tomato paste, dates, thyme, and water to the blender and blend until smooth, about 3 minutes.
    • Pour mixture into a large pot and stir in remaining ketchup ingredients. Bring mixture to a boil; lower the heat and simmer for 45 minutes to an hour. (If the mixture gets too thick, add water 2-3 tablespoons at a time).
    • Strain mixture through a fine sieve and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator until ready to use. (ketchup will hold for 5 to 6 months).
    • Preheat oven to 375°F.
    • Pour yucca fries into a large pot and fill with water. Place over medium- high heat and bring to a boil. Boil fries for about 15 minutes or until just fork tender.
    • Drain fries and spread onto a baking sheet. Drizzle with oil and season with salt and pepper. Toss together and redistribute fried into a single layer. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until fries are crisp on the outside and soft on the inside. Lightly season with salt and pepper and serve immediately with banana ketchup.
    Calories: 930kcal Carbohydrates: 193g Protein: 7g Fat: 16g Saturated Fat: 2g Sodium: 1554mg Potassium: 2062mg Fiber: 12g Sugar: 125g Vitamin A: 1911IU Vitamin C: 51mg Calcium: 165mg Iron: 5mg

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    June 29, 2012 / 27 Comments

    About Jenny Park

    Jenny Park is half of Spoon Fork Bacon. She is also a food stylist and recipe developer. One of her favorite foods is donuts. #sfbJENNY

    Previous Post: < Previous Post Baked Polenta
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    Reader Interactions

    June 29, 2012 / 27 Comments

    Comments

      5 from 1 vote (1 rating without comment)

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    1. Jenny Park

      June 30, 2020 at 1:30 pm

      I do t think i understand what you mean? There is no mustard in this recipe..

      Reply
    2. Jason Harty

      February 11, 2019 at 9:55 am

      What’s the additional 2Tbl of honey for?

      Reply
    3. Delma Smallwood

      September 23, 2016 at 6:49 am

      Thank you for this recipe. It sounds amazing! I have been looking for some healthy alternatives to my normal foods. I can’t wait to try this one on my family, and will let you know how it worked.

      Reply
    4. Laura (Blogging Over Thyme)

      June 18, 2014 at 1:50 pm

      So blown away by this post and your creativity! Just love it all.

      Reply
    5. Carly

      August 03, 2012 at 12:01 pm

      So I’ve been eyeing this ketchup recipe for a little while now (creepy right? ;) and I just ran out of my last homemade batch, but then when I looked over the recipe again I saw quite a few sweet ingredients (dates, bananas, molasses, brown sugar and honey) a lot more than I used in my original recipe, so I was wondering, is the ketchup really sweet?

      Reply
      • Jenny Park

        August 03, 2012 at 5:21 pm

        It’s not! You can definitely cut back on some of the “sweet” ingredients, but with the banana and lack of tomato acidity, these ingredients are important in brightening the ketchup up :)

        Reply
    6. Justin

      August 02, 2012 at 7:31 pm

      Thank you so much for enlightening us all with this recipe and combination that seems to originate from the heavens! I made this tonight following around 80% of the instructions (I had no dates and had a tomato instead of sauce, my apple cider vinegar was also infused with horseradish, ginger, garlic, onions & more) and am was literally wowing myself with every bite, sweating as I scarfed down these delicious almost hash-brown, almost fruity like yucca fries, carefully rationing out my delicious pink sauce from a higher plane of being, customized just right to suit my taste buds, and I swear at one point I even thought to myself, how this is better than anything I have had in a while, even with soy sauce…

      Reply
    7. Liza P

      July 22, 2012 at 12:08 pm

      GRILLED BANANAS, how wonderful!! I practically overdosed on grill plantains in Colombia, this is going on my weeks To-Do list! Gracias!!

      Reply
    8. PolaM

      July 19, 2012 at 7:43 pm

      Can you send me some? I love yucca fries and have always wanted to try banana ketchup!

      Reply
    9. Marina J Costa

      July 15, 2012 at 4:48 pm

      Here in Brazil, we ate a lot of yucca fries!! It’s a very common snack here. Much more tasty than french fries!!

      Reply
    10. Louise

      July 02, 2012 at 3:43 pm

      AMAZING FOOD!

      I love these stylish recipes!

      Thank you x

      Reply
    11. sushiqueen

      July 01, 2012 at 3:40 am

      What an idea to make banana ketchup! I’d love to try making it, too.

      It must be so delicious :)

      Reply
    12. Megan

      June 30, 2012 at 3:22 pm

      I can’t wait to try this recipe! Thanks for sharing!

      Reply
    13. Melanie

      June 30, 2012 at 2:45 pm

      This combo blows my mind! I’ve never had yucca before but I will have to track it down and give this a try. Thanks for a great post.

      Reply
    14. Cupcake and Talk

      June 30, 2012 at 10:59 am

      I love this recipe. I love trying new recipes. Thank you,

      Reply
    15. Y

      June 29, 2012 at 4:40 pm

      Wow, grilled banana ketchup sounds pretty special!

      Reply
    16. Healthy Living Val

      June 29, 2012 at 4:01 pm

      Oh wow, this banana ketchup reminds me a lot of the Filipino-style banana ketchup which is amazing! It can get pretty spicy but it’s sooo good. Yucca fries are my absolute favorite. There’s this one green sauce that you can get from some Peruvian places to dip them into and that’s one of those sauces that I’ve always tried to replicate, to no avail.

      Reply
    17. Katrina @ Warm Vanilla Sugar

      June 29, 2012 at 1:34 pm

      This is so awesome looking. Grilled banana ketchup?! You guys are so ahead of the game – I always look to you for inspiration!

      Reply
    18. Averie @ Averie Cooks

      June 29, 2012 at 10:24 am

      This sounds absolutely awesome and one of my fave posts of yours in awhile! Great job and I want that ketchup on everything!!

      Reply
      • Jenny Park

        June 29, 2012 at 10:34 am

        Aw, thanks Averie! :)

        Reply
    19. Tiffany

      June 29, 2012 at 9:28 am

      Yummm! We love yucca (or what we call mandioca around here — portuguese) in our house. And the sauce sounds perfect for it!

      Reply
    20. ileana

      June 29, 2012 at 8:45 am

      This sounds awesome! Just like your parents! I’d never heard of grilled banana ketchup, and I loooove yucca fries.

      Reply
    21. Tess

      June 29, 2012 at 8:37 am

      Also, that story was adorable! :)

      Reply
    22. Tess

      June 29, 2012 at 8:36 am

      Oh, wow! I grew up in Panama, eating yucca fries, which I love much more than potato fries, but I never thought of baking them. That’s genius. And though I usually avoid ketchup like the plague (only drizzle it over really bad fries or plantain crisps), this one sounds delicious! Can’t wait to try this recipe! :D

      Reply
    23. Sarah Toasty

      June 29, 2012 at 7:56 am

      Love yucca and the ketchup sounds so inventive! this is pinned to the to do list!

      Reply
    24. Ana Cooks

      June 29, 2012 at 7:53 am

      “I want it all, and i want it now!” :)

      beatiful photography, as usual!

      Reply
    25. Heather (Heather's Dish)

      June 29, 2012 at 7:49 am

      grilled bananas are genius – and that sauce sounds amazing! i love trying to recreate food that i’ve had in different places!

      Reply

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