Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Cassava kills 30 kids in Bohol
www.philstar.com ^ | 3 10 05 | Jose Sollano

Posted on 03/10/2005 12:50:44 AM PST by freepatriot32

click here to read article


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-54 last
To: dennisw

Sorry for the late comment, but I had to go get my car inspected, and I just got home.

The Yuca bread recipe sounds interesting. Question: Does your friend’s yuca have a bitter taste to it? I ask because I’m curious. I’m trying to compare your friend’s yuca with ours.

Also, now that I am thinking about it, and I verified it just now, when making the dough for the yuca frituras (here in Panama), a tiny, tiny bit of regular wheat flour is added to the dough to make it hold together better.


41 posted on 03/10/2005 8:21:31 AM PST by Gatún(CraigIsaMangoTreeLawyer)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 33 | View Replies]

To: dennisw

One way yuca is eaten here is after it is boiled, slather butter on it with a little bit of salt and a tiny bit of garlic. One can also chop up a little bit of parsley and sprinkle it over the yuca for color. I much prefer the yuca frituras, though.


42 posted on 03/10/2005 8:29:56 AM PST by Gatún(CraigIsaMangoTreeLawyer)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 33 | View Replies]

To: dennisw

According to google, there are two varieties of cassava, the bitter kind, that is poisonous and is used to make tapioca, and the sweet kind, which is not poisonous, and is also known as yuca.


43 posted on 03/10/2005 9:09:16 AM PST by CobaltBlue
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 20 | View Replies]

To: Alas Babylon!

Yucca isn't yuca. Yuca, cassava, manioc, all are names for the same two plants, the bitter/poisonous one which they use to make tapioca, and the sweet/non-poisonous one which tastes a lot like a potato.

The yucca in your yard is a completely different plant.


44 posted on 03/10/2005 9:12:07 AM PST by CobaltBlue
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 31 | View Replies]

To: CobaltBlue

"Yucca isn't yuca. Yuca, cassava, manioc, all are names for the same two plants, the bitter/poisonous one which they use to make tapioca, and the sweet/non-poisonous one which tastes a lot like a potato.

"The yucca in your yard is a completely different plant."

Please expand on this...thank you. I'm interested.


45 posted on 03/10/2005 9:29:37 AM PST by Gatún(CraigIsaMangoTreeLawyer)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 44 | View Replies]

To: CobaltBlue

Oh, I see....I didn't catch the difference in spelling in your post until this second. "Yucca" is a different animal.


46 posted on 03/10/2005 9:32:00 AM PST by Gatún(CraigIsaMangoTreeLawyer)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 44 | View Replies]

To: CobaltBlue

Wait a minute...Is "yucca" and "yuca" being used interchangeably here? In Latin countries, the correct selling is yuca...one "c."


47 posted on 03/10/2005 9:39:53 AM PST by Gatún(CraigIsaMangoTreeLawyer)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 44 | View Replies]

To: Alas Babylon!
I always wondered how people first discovered the safe way to eat cassava.

I always wondered how people first discovered the safe way to eat lobster.

48 posted on 03/10/2005 9:42:51 AM PST by Alouette (Learned Mother of Zion)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 15 | View Replies]

To: libstripper

Fox news got a little bit confused: The plant contains cyanogenic glucoside, which releases cyanide when "disturbed". It takes 150° or 3 days (I believe) to complete the reaction that releases the cyanide.


49 posted on 03/10/2005 12:58:42 PM PST by TaxRelief (Support the Troops Rally, Fayetteville, NC -- March 19, 2005)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 35 | View Replies]

To: Gatún(CraigIsaMangoTreeLawyer)
There is an ornamental perennial tropical shrub that grows in the US that people call yucca that is really related to agave plants, also known as Spanish dagger.

Nobody eats this. The yuca your mama serves with roast pork is a completely different plant.


50 posted on 03/10/2005 1:06:47 PM PST by CobaltBlue
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 47 | View Replies]

To: freepatriot32
Cassava, also known as yucca in the Latin food markets, has naturally-occurring levels of cyanogenic glycosides that can release hydrogen cyanide. Folks from Ivory Coast and Liberia make a dish that uses cassava leaves in a sauce for rice, but apparently it's the tubers that contain most of the cyanide.
SUMMARY

Cassava and bamboo shoots, grown primarily in the tropics, contain potentially toxic compounds called cyanogenic glycosides, linamarin and taxiphillin respectively, which break down upon disruption of the plant cells to form hydrogen cyanide. The toxicity of cyanogenic glycosides can be reduced by appropriate preparation of the plant material prior to consumption as food. Traditional uses of cassava and bamboo shoots as food are dependent on adequate processing prior to human consumption. If either cassava or bamboo shoots are eaten either raw or after inadequate processing, evidence of toxicity may be observed.

For cassava, peeling and slicing disrupts the cell structure of the plant, with subsequent liberation of hydrogen cyanide. Hydrogen cyanide can be removed by further processing such as cooking (baking, boiling, or roasting) or fermentation. For bamboo shoots, slicing into thin strips liberates hydrogen cyanide, which is removed by boiling.

Cyanogenic glycoside content of cassava and bamboo shoots There are a number of varieties of cassava, each of which has a different cyanide level. Values from 15-400 mg/kg fresh weight of hydrogen cyanide in cassava roots have been reported in the literature. Sweet varieties of cassava (low cyanide content) will typically contain approximately 15-50 mg/kg hydrogen cyanide on a fresh weight basis. Sweet varieties of cassava can be processed adequately by peeling and cooking (e.g. roasting, baking or boiling), whereas bitter varieties of cassava (high cyanide content) require more extensive processing, involving techniques such as heap fermentation which take several days. Bitter varieties are not normally commercially traded.

There are approximately 1200 species of bamboo, although only a small number are used as food. Bamboo shoots may contain as much as 1000 mg/kg hydrogen cyanide, significantly higher than the amounts detected in cassava tubers, however, the cyanide content is reported to decrease substantially following harvesting. The bamboo shoots sold commercially as food can be processed adequately by boiling before consumption. The process of canning bamboo shoots liberates and adequately removes hydrogen cyanide.

51 posted on 03/10/2005 1:08:17 PM PST by aruanan
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: CobaltBlue

So, yuca with one c is manioc, or cassava, but yucca with two c's is the one in my yard. That's right! Kinda like a bare bear drinking a beer?


52 posted on 03/10/2005 5:13:22 PM PST by Alas Babylon!
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 44 | View Replies]

To: Coop

No offense was intended.


53 posted on 03/10/2005 8:03:42 PM PST by Mad_Tom_Rackham (This just in from CBS: "There is no bias at CBS")
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 38 | View Replies]

To: Gatún(CraigIsaMangoTreeLawyer)

Ricin? Strychnine? Any guesses, G?


54 posted on 03/11/2005 3:42:12 PM PST by 7.62 x 51mm (• Veni • Vidi • Vino • Visa • "I came, I saw, I drank wine, I shopped")
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 16 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-54 last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson