Konjac lurking in the fernery |
Also known as konjac and devil's tongue, A. rivieri has been cultivated for centuries in China and Japan. Traditionally the tubers are used to make flour for noodles or are cooked as a vegetable. More recently they have been cultivated for the extraction of mannose, which is used as an ingredient in diabetic foods. It is closely related to the Titan Arum which caused a sensation after its discovery by Beccari in 1878 and produces an odour described by writer Deni Bown as "floral tear gas". Luckily for us, Amorphophallus rivieri is slightly less potent!
No comments:
Post a Comment