fragments of the carotenoid pigments Some varieties (e.g., red-skinned Garnet) suffer from after-cooking darkening (p 303) due to their abundant phenolic compounds Tropical Roots and Tubers Root and tuber vegetables that come from the tropics generally contain less water than common potatoes, and as much as double the starch (potatoes are 18% carbohydrate by weight, cassavas 36%) They therefore become very floury when baked, dense and waxy when boiled or steamed, and help thicken soups and stews in which they’re included They have a relatively short storage life and suffer chilling damage if refrigerated, but can be frozen after preliminary peeling and cutting Cassava, Manioc, and Yuca These are all names for the elongated root of a tropical plant in the spurge family, Manihot esculenta, which has the very useful habit of lasting in the ground for as much as three years It was domesticated in northern South America, and has spread through the lowland tropics of Africa and Asia in the last century or so It’s often made into flatbreads or fermented as well as cooked on its own There are two general groups of cassava varieties: potentially toxic “bitter” varieties that are used in the producing countries, and safer “sweet” varieties that are exported and found in our ethnic markets Bitter varieties, which are highly productive crop plants, have defensive cells that generate bitter cyanide throughout the root, and must be thoroughly treated — for example, by shredding, pressing, and washing — to become safe and palatable They’re mainly processed in the producing countries into flour and tapioca, small balls of dried cassava starch that become pleasantly jelly-like when ... spread through the lowland tropics of Africa and Asia in the last century or so It’s often made into flatbreads or fermented as well as cooked on its own There are two general groups of cassava varieties:... throughout the root, and must be thoroughly treated — for example, by shredding, pressing, and washing — to become safe and palatable They’re mainly processed in the producing countries into flour and. ..plant in the spurge family, Manihot esculenta, which has the very useful habit of lasting in the ground for as much as three years It was domesticated in northern South America, and has spread