There is a tree in the south that does not eat fruit and eats roots, but it tastes as poisonous as sweet potato.

In the south of our country, there is a kind of low tree, it looks very ordinary, can blossom and bear fruit, but people do not eat its fruit, but eat roots, so that outsiders do not understand. This kind of tree is locally called "cassava" and "Nanyang potato". It is a crop introduced from America. It is characterized by many and large roots, just like an enlarged version of sweet potato, so it is called "cassava". Cassava is edible and tastes like sweet potato, but it is so toxic that it can never be eaten raw.

The scientific name of cassava is "cassava". Together with sweet potato and potato, it is called "the three largest potatoes in the world". It is an important food crop in tropical developing countries. Cassava is the main food for low-income people in some African countries. In China, cassava is widely grown in Guangdong, Guangxi and Hainan. In the past, when there was not enough to eat, it used to be an important grain, but now it is mainly used for processing cassava powder and animal feed. In China's rural areas, cassava is also a kind of coarse grain food, occasionally eating is good for the health, but it must be noted that it needs to be detoxified before it can be eaten.

The process of detoxification of cassava is tedious because its toxin is a neurotoxin. If it is only cooked and cannot be completely detoxified, the skin needs to be removed and soaked in running water for a week or so before cooking. Because this toxin is soluble in water, it is best to use flowing blisters, and the water after soaking is also toxic and cannot be used. After being washed by water, most of the toxins in cassava will be removed, and then they can be steamed, boiled and fried. After high temperatures, they can be safely eaten.

The main component of cassava is starch, especially sun-dried cassava, which contains up to 80% starch and is an excellent material for processing cassava powder. Although fresh cassava is very toxic, cassava powder after a series of processing is a very safe starch and is often used in people's daily life. For example, thickening with cassava flour, the color is transparent and thick, and there is no peculiar smell. The color of the dish is bright and beautiful, which is better than corn starch.

However, although cassava can be eaten, it has a strong sense of fullness and more crude fiber, so you need to be careful not to eat too much. Readers, have you ever eaten cassava?