Manihot

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Manihot
Manihot palmata

Manihot palmata

Systematics
Rosids
Eurosiden I
Order : Malpighiales (Malpighiales)
Family : Spurge Family (Euphorbiaceae)
Subfamily : Crotonoideae
Genre : Manihot
Scientific name
Manihot
Mill.

Manihot is a genus of plants from the milkweed family(Euphorbiaceae). Common names for these types of plants are cassava , mandioca , cassava or, in Latin America, yuca . The genus Manihot distinguishes between 60 and 100 species. Some species are grown in the tropics to provide starch. All the cultivated species are given the above name, depending on the region. The most important type is manioc ( Manihot esculenta ). The plant is widely grown because of its starchy root. It originally comes from today'sBrazil and Paraguay and was used by the indigenous peoples for food even before the discovery of America by the Europeans. It is now grown worldwide in many parts of the tropics and subtropics .

description

Manioc styles are trees , shrubs , half-shrubs or herbaceous plants . They contain white milky juice . Some species have tubers. The alternate leaves are divided simply or hand-shaped. The petioles are long. The stipules are small.

The plants are mostly single-sexed ( monoecious ), rarely dioecious and separate-sexed ( dioecious ). The flowers are in several simple or compound, often terminal racemose or trugdoldigen inflorescences . The unisexual flowers are five-fold. The inflorescence consists of only five sepals , the petals are missing. The male flowers contain eight to 15 free stamens in two circles. In addition to the pistil, the female flowers sometimes contain some staminodes . They form tripartite capsule fruits .

Manihot glaziovii garbage. Arg. , Syn .: Manihot carthagenensis subsp. glaziovii (garbage. Arg.) everything. , Illustration
Manihot cecropiifolia , flower
Cassava ( Manihot esculenta ), illustration
Cassava ( Manihot esculenta ), young plant
Manihot gracilis , flower
Manihot peltata , leaves
Manihot peltata , blossom
Leaf of Manihot quinqueloba
Manihot salicifolia
Manihot salicifolia , illustration
Manihot violacea , illustration

Systematics

The genus Manihot was established in 1754 by the English botanist Philip Miller . Today, within the genus, there are around 60 to 100 species, all of which come from the Neotropic , mostly from Brazil.

In the following list of around 100 recognized species, in addition to the botanical author abbreviation, the publication with the year of publication of the first description is given including the area of ​​distribution:

Cassava ( Manihot esculenta ), rhizomes after harvest
Dried cassava starch

use

The 30 to 60 cm long rhizomes, rich in milk sap and starch flour and standing in clusters, contain hydrogen cyanide in some species and are therefore poisonous. Symptoms of poisoning are ataxia , amblyopia . However, the volatile hydrogen cyanide is removed by suitable treatment (strong heating), and good food is then obtained. However, cassava has a low protein content (only about 1.2%) and very few essential amino acids . (Danger of Kwashiorkor syndrome.) To counteract this, we recommend consuming the protein-rich cassava leaves.

The use of the tubers as food goes back to the indigenous people of South America. Cassava is still an important staple food in Brazil today, especially in the north and northeast of the country.

Like many tropical crops, the cassava bush provides a high yield with little effort.

The tubers are peeled, grated and grated, and then soaked. After a few days, the mass is squeezed out, washed through the so-called tipiti and roasted in ovens. The mass that remains in the press provides the manioc or mandioca flour (farinha).

Cassava flour can be used in a similar way to wheat flour. People with allergies to wheat and other grains therefore often use cassava flour as a substitute. It does not contain gluten .

A by-product of the manufacture of cassava flour is starch ("polvilho"), which is roasted and then called " tapioca ".

In other regions, slightly different products are obtained using a modified process; The flour is also used to prepare cakes (for example the Beijus ), which are more or less similar to our bread, and in the Antilles the mandioka flour is mixed with wheat flour and baked into bread (“conaque”).

The fresh root is used as a remedy for ulcers .

The leaves of the cassava are eaten as a vegetable. The seeds of all three types mentioned above have a purging and vomiting effect.

Delicacies that are made from cassava in Brazil are (among others) Beiju , Farofa or Tarubá . A dish that is particularly popular in Peru is “Yuca á la Huancaína”, “Yuquitas” is even available there as a snack at all major fast-food chains.

Cassava is also used intensively and with pleasure in Central Africa ( Cameroon , Gabon , Congo , etc.). The flour (foufou) is often used for a kind of dumpling dough. The tuber is often cooked in steam or water and is often fried. Cassava leaves are also a very popular dish and are made with peanut paste , oil palm fruits, or coconut milk. The manioc sticks (Bibolo) wrapped in palm leaves are very popular (and take some getting used to for European palates). These are made by completely washing out the starch from the cassava flour. This solid, rubbery, tranzlucid substance is eaten as an accompaniment to fish and meat.

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Web links

Commons : Manihot  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Gard. Dict. Abr. ed. 4 (1754).
  2. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj ak al am an ao ap aq ar as at au av aw ax ay az ba bb bc bd be bf bg bh bi bj bk bl bm bn bo bp bq br bs bt bu bv bw bx by bz ca cb cc cd ce cf cg ch ci cj ck cl cm cn co cp cq cr cs ct cu cv cw cx cy cz da db dc dd de df dg dh di dj dk dl dm dn do dp dq dr ds dt du dv dw dx dy dz ea eb ec ed ee ef eg eh ei ej ek el em en eo ep eq er es et eu ev ew Rafaël Govaerts (Ed.): Manihot. In: World Checklist of Selected Plant Families (WCSP) - The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew . Retrieved June 12, 2020.