Taro root

The food scene on the islands reflects its location in the Pacific. Thai, Vietnamese, Japanese, Chinese and native Hawaiian cuisines are all heavily represented on the islands. Before Europeans discovered Hawaii in the late 1700s, the islanders were primarily vegetarians, living off native fruits, tubers such as the taro root, and edible sea plants. Tropical fruits and vegetables are readily available at all local markets you ll find bananas, avocados, coconuts, breadfruit, mangoes, papaya, passion fruit, guavas, macadamia nuts and litchi (a small fruit with a thin red shell). 

Llewellyn and Eadie, 1974), soybeans (Sherertz et al., 1976), apiarin substrates (Hilldrup et al., 1977), celery, cauliflower, lettuce and taro roots (Raghu et al., 1978), cocoa beans (Llewellyn et al., 1979), apricots, pineapple and raisins (Morton et al., 1979), berries (Llewellyn et al., 1982) as well as mushrooms (Llewellyn et al., 1983). 

Lupine seed, though used primarily in animal feeds (see Feeds AND FEED ADDITIVES), does have potential for use in human appHcations as a replacement for soy flour, and is reported to contain both trypsin inhibitors and hemagglutenins (17). The former are heat labile at 90°C for 8 minutes the latter seem much more stable to normal cooking temperatures. Various tropical root crops, including yam, cassava, and taro, are also known to contain both trypsin and chymotrypsin inhibitors, and certain varieties of sweet potatoes may also be impHcated (18). 

Nufrifional bars confaining cold-extruded whey have been developed (Joseph et ah, 1995). Extrusion was conducted at 37 °C to produce a low-calorie product with high nutrient value. A weaning food was obfained by extending WPC, WPI, or a-LA with taro flour, which is derived from a tropical root tuber (Onwulata et ah, 2002). The extrudates were pulverized, made into powders, and rehydrated into pastes. WPI coblended extrudates produced the best consistency. 

Root or stem plants Japanese radish (root), carrot, ginger, potato, sweet potato, taro, sugar beet... 

The family is mostly tropical and subtropical but extends into temperate areas including a few representatives in the United Stales. In the New World, we recognize some genera as ornamentals (e.g., the calla lily) in the Old World, some roots are used as food (e.g., taro) as are the fruits of Monslera species. 

Beckles et al. (2001) showed the presence of a soluble cytosolic ADPG glucophosphorylase in barley. They then measured the ratio of the levels of ADPG to that of UDPG in the endosperm of many cereal endosperms including that of E. coracana, tomato seeds, bean cotyledon, and roots of yam and taro. The ratio varied from 0.30 to 0.64 (0.38 in the endosperm of Eleusine) and varied from 0.01 to 0.04 in the others. The higher ratio in the cereal endosperm was taken as an index of greater activity of the enzyme in these tissues. 

Sipes, B.S., Arakaki, A.S. Root-knot nematode management in dryland taro with tropical cover crops. Suppl J Nematol 1997 29 721-724. 

Pol, The root of the taro plant, Colocasta escw-lenta (L.) Schott, Araceae. Used as a cereal substitute, particularly in allergy cases and potentially allergic infants. 

This is a Hawaiian food made from the root of the taro which is baked, pounded, moistened, and fermented. Ftoi tastes slightly sour hence, some individuals trying poi for the first time find it unpleasant. 

Boiled taro tubers are sunilat in nutritional v e to other root and tuber vegetables 167% water, 124 kcal per 100 g, and 1.9% proteinl. The nuimional value oi taro tubers is siridar to that of potatoes, except that die tain is much lower in wtamin C, The leaves are more nuliili ous than the tubers. Neither the tools nor the leaves of taro should be consumed taw, because some varieties contain potenually harmful amounts of calcium oxalate crystals. 

---