Do you eat cocoyam?How do you like to eat cocoyam?
What cocoyam recipes have you tried out?
If you use cocoyam as a soup thickener, have you used cocoyam flour as a soup thickener?
Do you make your own cocoyam flour or do you buy from the market?
Did you know that you can process your own cocoyam flour from the comfort of your kitchen?
If you have some fresh cocoyam tubers, do you know how to process them into cocoyam flour?
Well, take your time and read through this post to learn how you can easily make cocoyam flour.
But before we dive deep into cocoyam flour production, let's throw a bit of light on what cocoyam is.
Meanwhile, Watch this video on how to make cocoyam flour!
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What is cocoyam? Cocoyam is a tropical perennial root vegetable cultivated mainly for its edible starchy corms or tubers, petioles and leaves. It is popularly known as taro or kalo in Hawaiian. Cocoyam belongs to the member of the Araceae family and it is botanically known as Colocasia esculenta or Xanthosoma sagittifolium. Taro is an ancient crop grown throughout the humid tropical regions. Cocoyam corms are often considered similar to yam tubers but they do differ from each other in several ways. Cocoyam is a common staple food especially in Africa and Asia, although other cultures do consume it. Both the cocoyam tubers, stems and leaves are an important source of carbohydrates for human nutrition and animal consumption. Feel free to read more about cocoyam and the benefits of cocoyam here.
How to eat cocoyam: Cocoyam tubers can be boiled whole or cooked together with other condiments. There are various species of cocoyam and the method of cooking cocoyam for consumption depends on the type of cocoyam in question. Basically, those types of cocoyam that remain slimy after being cooked cannot be eaten directly. This type is mostly used as a soup thickener; it is first cooked until soft, peeled and blended before adding into soup for further cooking. However, those species that do not produce a slimy effect after boiling can be eaten whole with either oil or sauces. Cocoyam tubers can also be fried in oil or pounded into fufu. Using cocoyam as a soup thickener is a common practice especially in the eastern part of Nigeria. Cocoyam cannot be eaten raw and it must be cooked well before consumption due to the high amount of toxic calcium oxalate in some species. The high amount of calcium oxalate in cocoyam contributes to its irritation and acridity. Cocoyam's acridity or acidity can be reduced by boiling, peeling, washing with hot water, grating, soaking, fermenting or sun-drying depending on the method of production. Cocoyam leaves can be used for cooking food or soup but the only cocoyam soup I'm conversant with is the cocoyam leaves soup. For this soup, cocoyam leaves are sundried before being used for cooking soup. Cocoyam leaves soup (ofe mpoto ede) is one of my mum's favourite soups but honestly, I don't really like that soup...winks. I probably might consider cooking the soup sometimes in the future when I have some cocoyam leaves, so see if my tastebud has come around to liking it.
Back to the topic of discussion, cocoyam corms are used in several cuisines such as cocoyam porridge, cocoyam with vegetables etc. However, cocoyam is mostly used for thickening food. To be used as a soup thickener, cocoyam tubers are first cooked until done, peeled and then blended before usage. But in the absence of fresh cocoyams, cocoyam flour (cocoyam powder) is a great alternative and perfectly fits the bill of serving as a thickener. Moreover, having cocoyam flour in your kitchen offers you that convenience whenever you want to use it for cooking. Cocoyam flour is usually sold in the urban markets or western markets as a “soup thickener”. The truth is that you can produce your own cocoyam flour if you are willing to do so. Simply follow the detailed steps shown below or watch the video of how to make cocoyam flour included in this post.
How long can cocoyam flour last? Cocoyam flour can last all year round in as much as it is properly dried before being milled or produced into powder.
How to make Cocoyam Flour
- Peel the cocoyam roots (taro) and add them in a clean bowl.
- Wash the cocoyams to get rid of mucilage from the peeled surfaces.
- Use a slicer to thinly slice the cocoyam corms.
- Spread out the sliced cocoyam pieces on a flat surface.
- Place the cocoyam under the sunlight for 3 to 5 days or more, to dry properly.
- Add the dried cocoyam pieces in a high-speed blender and blend into a fine powdery flour.
- Alternatively, use a milling machine to mill the cocoyam flour.
- Store processed cocoyam flour in a dry place and use when needed.
