Cassava is traditionally grown as a staple food crop particularly by small-scale subsistence farmers.
It has many advantages to a small scale farmer. These include:
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High levels of carbohydrate production.
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Tolerant to drought and poor soils.
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It is propagated via lignified stem cuttings, thus none of the harvest needs be set aisde as subsequent planting material.
The roots, which are the most valuable portions of the plant, grow in clusters of four to eight at the stem base. Roots are 2.5-10cm in diameter and from 10-40cm long. There are two types of cassava; "bitter" and "sweet." These terms refer to the levels of cyanogenic glucosides within the storage roots. The roots are also used for animal feed and the starch is used for glue, laundry starch, and tapioca pudding. Leaves are not eaten raw because of the cyanogenic compounds they contain. The peeled root of the sweet varieties may be prepared for eating simply by boiling or roasting.
Cassava is grown for its enlarged starch-filled roots, which contains nearly the maximum theoretical concentration of starch on a dry weight basis among food crops. Fresh roots contain about 30% starch and very little protein. Roots are prepared much like potato. They can be peeled and boiled, baked, or fried and made in chips and crisps. It is not recommended to eat cassava uncooked, because of potentially toxic concentrations of cyanogenic glucosides that are reduced to innocuous levels through cooking. However, millions of people worldwide eat cassava regularly with no toxic results. The cyanogenic compounds are not really a problem, as the cyanide is removed with adequate preparation.
Traditionally the roots are grated and the sap is extracted through squeezing or pressing. The cassava is then further dried over a fire to make a meal or fermented and cooked. The meal can then be rehydrated with water or added to soups or stews. In Africa, roots are processed in several ways: - They may be first fermented in water. Then they are either sun-dried for storage or grated and made into a dough that is cooked. Alcoholic beverages can be made from the roots.
Young tender leaves, containing high levels of protein (8-10% fresh weight) can be prepared in a similar manner as spinach.
World consumption of cassava for food (fresh or processed) is concentrated in the developing world. In Africa, about 70% of cassava production is used as food. The most popular processed products are commonly known as gari, lafun, foufou, attiéké and chickwangue. Gari, a dry granular meal made from moist and fermented cassava, is most commonly used in west Africa. Other forms of processed cassava consumption include a sun-dried cassava known as lafun in southwest Nigeria and sticky or heavy soups made from fermented cassava known as foufou . In other parts of Africa, cassava is commonly made into flour from dried roots or chunks of roots, and consumed as flour commonly named attiéké and chickwangue .
In Latin America and the Caribbean, 35-40% of the cassava production is used for human consumption. One-fifth is eaten fresh, mostly by the rural population, in three principal manners: fresh (boiled or fried); as a roasted flour called farinha de mandioca, popular in northern Brazil and neighbouring areas, and as a pre-cooked flour called farinha da mesa. In Brazil, a number of new cassava products are gaining in popularity in the food industry and in urban fast-food outlets, in particular naturally fermented cassava starch, commonly known as polvilho azedo, which has bread-making properties. In the southern, central and western regions, the main cassava based fast-food, pão de queijo, a kind of bread made of sweet and sour cassava starches, cheese and eggs, is consumed in virtually every family. Sour, a fermented starch extracted from cassava, is used in Colombia to prepare snacks and traditional gluten-free cheese breads called pan de yuca and pan de bono. Similarly, in the countries of the Caribbean basin, moist cassava pulp is used to prepare a thick cake called bammy. An unleavened bread commonly known as casabe, is also a speciality in that area.
