Fried Yuca With Peruvian Cheese Sauce

• 1/2 lb Mexican queso fresco or mild feta cheese, broken into small pieces
• 1/2 cup half-and-half
• 1 1/2 tablespoons bottled aji amarillo puree (available at kitchenmarket.com)
• 1 garlic clove, peeled and smashed
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 lb fresh yuca (cassava) or 1 1/2 lb frozen peeled yuca (not thawed)
• About 6 cups vegetable oil
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• Garnish: fresh lime wedges (preferably Key limes)
• a deep-fat thermometer

1. Pulse together sauce ingredients in a food processor until smooth.
2. If using fresh yuca, trim ends and cut crosswise into 3-inch pieces, then peel, removing waxy brown skin and pinkish layer underneath.
3. Cover yuca (fresh or frozen) with cold salted water by 1 inch in a 4-quart pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until yuca is tender when pierced with a wooden skewer, 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to several layers of paper towels to drain, then cool 5 minutes. Cut yuca lengthwise into 1/8-inch-wide wedges, discarding thin woody core. (If there are pieces that have white parts to them, return them to barely simmering water and simmer until almost translucent.)
4. Heat about 1 1/2 inches oil in a 4- to 5-quart heavy pot over moderate heat until it registers 360u0b0F on thermometer.
5. Fry yuca in 3 batches, turning occasionally, until golden, 3 to 5 minutes per batch. Transfer with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain. (Return oil to 360u0b0F between batches.) Sprinkle fries with salt and serve with cheese sauce.

queso fresco, amarillo puruee, garlic, black pepper, fresh yuca, vegetable oil, salt, lime wedges, thermometer

Taken from www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/fried-yuca-with-peruvian-cheese-sauce-235424 (may not work)