Some plants are valuable from head to toe, but taro is poisonous from head to toe...

In China, crops that can be named with just one word are plants with a long history of cultivation and consumption, and many of them are native to China. Taro is no exception.

Origin of the name taro

There are many theories about the origin of the word "taro". The one most cited in various classics is the statement in "Shuowen Jiezi" - "The big leaves and solid roots are shocking, so it is called taro"; Xu Kai explained it as "Taro is the same as the word "yu", which means "shock". So it is called "shocking." That is to say, the ancients were very surprised when they saw the rough branches and leaves of taro, and they unconsciously exclaimed "yuh!", and taro got its name from this.

How big is taro? See | wikipedia

The genus name of taro in its Latin scientific name comes from the Roman name for it, colocasia. Originating from Asia, taro was introduced to Europe as early as the Roman era, and even developed several ways of eating it. Its specific epithet esculenta indicates its destiny of being eaten.

But this cannot be said to be tragic. Thanks to its extremely high edible value, taro has spread throughout southern Asia since a long time ago and has now occupied tropical and subtropical regions around the world.

Fried taro｜Pixabay

Varieties of taro

From the origin of the name of taro, we can find that taro has a very long history of cultivation. Such plant species usually have varieties with different edible positions, and taro is of course one of them. Most of the taro planted in northern and central China is multi-seed taro . The edible value of this type of mother taro is not high, but the plant is very easy to divide, and many child taro will grow next to the mother taro, and the edible part is these child taro.

The multi-seed taro has the big end facing upwards (the big taro is spindle-shaped), and you can see how the small taro is divided | Yu Tianyi

The key to eating taro is that it is tender and juicy, so if it grows too big and has too much fiber, the taste will be much worse. Therefore, the small taro seen in southern vegetable markets is relatively small. Such taro is delicious enough to be used in dishes that really test the original flavor of the ingredients, such as scallion-fried taro and osmanthus candied taro.

Braised taro with green onion | Douguo Food @cici0525

However, the vegetable market in the north is so bleak that the small taro are of different sizes and most of them are too old. It is difficult to find ones of the right size, so they are mostly boiled or steamed and eaten with sugar.

Taro dipped in sugar | Tuchong Creative

The main taro cultivated in the south is the Dakui taro . The yield of this type of taro is very small, while the mother taro grows very large, spindle-shaped, with obvious leaf scars; the taro flesh has less mucus, high starch content and low water content, so it is powdery and has a soft texture. Moreover, many varieties of Dakui taro have a very strong aroma, such as the famous Lipu taro (betel nut taro), which is often called fragrant taro in the south because of its extremely fragrant taste.

Lipu Taro | Tuchong Creative

However, the name "fragrant taro" often causes some confusion. The "fragrant taro flavor" commonly seen in dessert shops actually comes from Dioscorea alata, a relative of yam . The tuber of this plant has a faint vanilla smell, and the flesh is purple, which is more in line with the "fragrant taro purple" we often say than taro.

When taro appears in dessert shops, people will habitually add purple sweet potato to add color to it, such as taro pie and taro balls.

Taro pie is also made of taro | Yu Tianyi

Sweet and salty parties compete for love

Whether it is the multi-sprout taro or the big kui taro (fragrant taro), the taro they produce is a rare ingredient that can be both sweet and savory. Whether you are a sweet or savory person, you probably can't deny that taro is very delicious whether it is made into savory dishes or desserts.

The taro is smooth when made into scallion-fried taro, and fragrant and tender when made into candied taro shoots. Taro can complement the taste of meat, and traditional dishes such as taro braised goose and taro braised pork are fragrant. It can also be made into taro soup or even taro pie, and the sweet fragrance can bring people a full sense of happiness. Taro can also be made into Taiwanese traditional snacks such as taro balls with sweet potato flour or cassava flour. The taste is soft and sticky, and it can be paired with various desserts and smoothies.

Sweet Party's Candied Taro Sprouts | Douguo Food @ Xuanse Luanshuz

Salty Taro Braised Pork | Tuchong Creative

There are also taro balls | flickr shang-y

Toxic but hard to give up

The edible part of taro is mainly its tuber , which is rich in starch. In Japan, the word "taro" (いも) refers to the tubers and roots of all plant species that are rich in starch. However, in areas where taro is abundant, people do not let go of any of its parts - even if the whole taro plant is poisonous .

You can often see taro flowers in Yunnan vegetable markets. Although they are called flowers, they are actually a whole inflorescence. Unlike the Alocasia genus (Dripping Alocasia), the spathe of the inflorescence of the Alocasia genus (as shown in the picture, the yellow part at the top) does not fully open, so it looks like a long and thin strip. This is a very risky ingredient to eat - the toxicity of taro flowers may be the strongest in the whole taro plant , and it is easy to be poisoned if you are not familiar with the handling method.

Taro flower, the purple one is the peduncle, the yellow one is the semi-closed spathe | Yu Tianyi

Raw taro tubers, taro, are also somewhat toxic , and the main toxic substance is oxalic acid. The oxalic acid content of taro varieties we can see now is not high, and most of the oxalic acid can be removed by soaking or heating for a long time . However, when handling food, the oxalic acid in the juice will still make the parts of our body that come into contact with it itchy and red, and eating taro that is not fully cooked will also numb the tongue. Therefore, when we handle taro, it is best to wear gloves or take some protective measures.

Image | wikipedia

In fact, most species of the Araceae family, where taro belongs, are poisonous , and this toxicity can protect its plants, especially the tubers, from harm. However, since many species in this family have tubers full of starch, this source of nutrition is exactly what our ancestors needed - toxicity has never been a problem for humans, and people in many areas still eat poisonous plants (such as the magical Yunnan); so humans still try their best to bring these poisons to the table.

Image | Wikimedia Commons

Wild taro (Colocasia esculentum var. antiquorum) is very toxic. Even the Compendium of Materia Medica states that "wild taro is very poisonous and should not be eaten." However, after thousands of generations of breeding, the toxicity of taro varieties that are eaten today is very low. Similar plants include the konjac genus, and most wild konjac species are highly toxic.

The Araceae family is rich in poisonous plants, as well as species with large leaves. The leaves of konjac (left) and taro (right) are both very large. | Yu Tianyi

Author: Yu Tianyi

This article comes from the Species Calendar, welcome to forward

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