Be prepared to be transported to Puerto Rico with this Alcapurria de Yuca recipe. It is one of the most popular street foods on the island, and I will show you how to make it wherever you are.
What is Alcapurria de Yuca?
Alcapurrias de yuca is a traditional Puerto Rican recipe. They’re savory, crispy, golden brown fritters made from grated yuca root. The dough is seasoned with salt, all purpose adobo seasoning mix, and added oil with achiote in it. It is usually stuffed with stewed crab meat or my favorite Puerto Rican style picadillo.
You can get alcapurrias anywhere in Puerto Rico, even in high-end restaurants. But the best are made in chinchorros on any side of the road, made in a wood-open flame that gives the alcapurria a unique taste.
There, not only do you get alcapurrias, but also authentic bacalaitos, or Puerto Rican chicken pinchos, and drinks like the frozen piña coladas, or mojitos made with parcha. But you also have the experience of the smell, music, and our people.
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Why This Recipe Works
- Stuff it with your favorite filling. The most popular ones are crab meat, ground beef, shredded chicken, and stewed pork meat. You can even use corned beef.
- This is a recipe you can make ahead, freeze, and fry when ready to enjoy!
- They make great party food if you make them in mini sizes.
Recipe Ingredients
- Grated Yuca- I use store-bought grated yuca because it’s very convenient. I usually find it by the Goya brand. I like using store-bought grated yuca because I don’t have to deal with yuca being bad and end up with less product to work with. Plus, there is less mess to clean up! You can also make your own yuca dough.
- Seasonings- To season the alcapurrias, we use salt and adobo. Some people season the alcapurrias differently by adding garlic powder and even some Puerto Rican traditional sofrito. I like to keep it simple so you can get a real taste of the yuca.
- Achiote Oil- The oil is added to give the dough a smokey flavor and the beautiful color that alcapurrias de yuca have. Learn more about Achiote to see its benefits.
- Picadillo- I used cooked ground beef as a filling. But stuff it with whatever you like.
How to make Alcapurrias de Yuca
- Photo 1: First, we need to prepare the yuca dough by seasoning it and adding the achiote oil. Mix it all until it has an even color.
- Photo 2: Take parchment paper and cut it into large squares. Add achiote oil to the parchment. This is to avoid the alcapurria sticking from the paper. If you’re making alcapurrias to fry at the moment, it is good to use a banana leaf because is more slippery.
- Photo 3: Place the yuca dough on the parchment and form an even tortilla shape. Remember, you can make it smaller or bigger depending on what you want.
- Photo 4: Add your preferred filling on top of the dough in the center.
- Photo 5: Close up the alcapurria and finish shaping with a spoon. If you are having trouble shaping the alcapurria, you can make it a boxed square shape or round. These are not traditional shapes, but have been done before.
- Photo 6: Fry the alcapurrias for 6 minutes and drain on a paper towel.
Recipe Tips
- When you bite into the alcapurria and you see the dough a light yellow, it means it’s still raw. You can put it again to fry for 2 minutes.
- The best way to keep alcapurrias warm is in the oven. Preheat your oven to 200F and then turn it off. Turn on the light and keep the alcapurrias in the oven for no more than 15 minutes.
- You can serve alcapurrias in a fritters tray with mini versions of Puerto Rican stuffed potato balls, Puerto Rican pizza empanadillas, or Puerto Rican cheese dogs.
Frequently Asked Questions
To make yuca dough, all you have to do is peel the yuca. Then you have to chop it into small chunks to make it easier on your blender. Blend everything in batches and mix it all. You can also make the dough by grating the yuca in a box grater.
You can find grated yuca in big chain supermarkets like Walmart and Stop and Shop in the frozen section. Another place to find grated yuca is in Latin, African, or Asian markets.
Some people like to squeeze water out of the yuca, but I don’t. This is because I find myself with dry crumbly masa that doesn’t hold together. So unless I don’t see a watery dough or an excess of liquid around the rim of my bowl, I don’t remove the liquid.
More party food ideas!
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Easy Alcapurria de Yuca
- parchment paper
Ingredients
Alcapurria Dough
- 2 pounds grated yuca
- ½ tablespoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon
adobo - ¼ cup achiote oil
Meat Filling
Frying
- 2 cups oil
Instructions
Ground Beef
- In a medium size pan over high heat add the sofrito and tomato sauce. Cook for about 2 minutes while stirring. Add the ground beef, water, sazon, and adobo. Break apart the meat until you have no chunks left. Cook for 10 minutes and set aside.
Alcapurria Assembly
- In a big bowl add the grated yuca, salt, adobo, and achiote seed oil. Mix everything until you see the dough get an even color.
- Take parchment paper and cut it into a square of about 7 inches. Add ½ teaspoon of oil onto the parchment.
- Add ½ cup of the dough onto the parchment and flatten it until you make a small tortilla shape. Add ¼ cup or 4 tablespoons of beef to the middle of the dough.
- Take both ends of the parchment paper and close the alcapurria. With a spoon softly shape the excess dough into the rest of the alcapurria.
Frying
- In a large pot over medium-high heat, add 2 cups of oil. Once the oil is hot, slowly add the alcapurrias by taking one end of the parchment and putting it close to the oil so the alcapurria can roll in it. Fry for 3 minutes on each side. You might need to fry in batches depending on your pan size.
Recipe Notes
- Yuca- You can use store-bought and also use fresh yuca and grated yourself.
- Achiote oil- You can make your own in less than 10 minutes with achiote seeds. If you don’t have achiote oil for the dough, you can use sazon. But you must add the sazon to the grated yuca before the salt. Then add about half of the salt and taste the dough. This is to make sure the dough is not too salty.
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pHqghUme says
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pHqghUme says
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pHqghUme says
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Maria Blankman says
How do you make the crabmeat for the yuca alcapurrias?
Stephenie says
You’re welcome!😊
Anonymous says
Love it thank you!🥰