How many of you have eaten tapioca pudding? Have you ever wondered where tapioca comes from? Since June 28 was National Tapioca Day, I decided to do a little research and answer those questions.

 

What Is It?

Tapioca is a starch. It comes from the roots of the cassava plant and is similar in size and shape to a sweet potato. In Brazil, where the cassava plant originated, it’s called mandioca. It thrives in hot tropical climates and grows in areas of poor soil better than other food plants. It reaches full maturity in ten months and can be harvested every two months.

DYK cassava is the sixth most important crop in the world?

 

Where’d the Name Come From?

The word tapioca comes from tipi’óka. That’s what the Brazil natives called it when the Portuguese first arrived around 1500. It means sediment or coagulant, referring to the product left after the extraction process is complete. The product’s shape—beads, flakes, or sticks—depends on the extraction process method used.

DYK in Britain, children call tapioca pudding frog spawn because the tapioca beads look like clumps of frog eggs?

 

Why Process It?

Unlike potatoes, you can’t just dig up the cassava tuber and eat it. Unprocessed, or improperly processed, the tapioca starch from the green-branched cassava plant is poisonous. Cyanogenic glycoside, found naturally in the plant, is the source of a cyanide-based poison.

DYK tapioca that’s been processed is usually white but sticks and pearls can be colored?

 

A Food?

As the third-largest source of carbohydrates, more than 500 million people around the world use tapioca as a main food staple.

DYK Southeast Asia experienced a food shortage during World War I and refugees survived on tapioca?

Throughout the world, tapioca is used in many ways and foods, including jelly; flatbreads and other types of breads and biscuits; and cakes, cookies, and other desserts. Its neutral taste, and the fact that it rehydrates in liquid, makes tapioca a good thickening agent for things like dumplings, gravies, soups, and stews. It’s even used in brewing alcohol.

For people in the Western world, the first mention of tapioca is in Cassell’s Dictionary of Cooking in 1875, where it was identified and recommended for use in puddings.

 

The Real Mystery?

The cassava plant as a domesticated root crop goes back 8,000-10,000 years, meaning there are no records of how it became food for man. Obviously, early man knew it was poisonous, but who discovered it was safe to eat after processing?

And how did they figure out what process worked? Trial and error? (I wonder how many taste-testers that took?) Thankfully, someone did finally discover the right process and today we can safely enjoy tapioca in a variety of ways.

 

Tapioca “Did You Know?” Extras

• Tapioca starch contains no fat or cholesterol and is totally gluten-free.
• Tapioca pearls are 89% carbohydrates and 11% water.
• Uncooked and dried tapioca pearls will last two years. Cooked pearls might last ten days in a refrigerator. The difference is the addition of water, which allows microbes to grow.
• The Maya cultivated cassava.
• In the 1800s, cassava was introduced into Asia, after which it became a common Asian food.
• Today about 60% of cassava comes from Thailand. Thailand, Nigeria, and Brazil are the world’s largest producers.
• Tapioca roots purchased by processing plants must be processed within 24 hours of harvest.
• Tapioca starch is used to starch clothes.
• Tapioca resin is a plastic substitute. It can be used to make renewable, reusable, and recyclable biodegradable bags, as well as gloves, capes, and aprons.
• Most people in Europe don’t use tapioca. The exceptions are Belgium, France, and the UK.