roots from l to r : Arrow root, Cassava and Red Sweet Potatoes at the Waruku street kiosks. That 50 kshs ($0.70) would get you a bunch of 3 larger potatoes. I do not recall what the Cassava was going for but could not have been more than 25 kshs for that half root, possibly 75 kshs for the lot
This post is about some one of the roots/tubers commonly eaten in Kenya. Will touch on others in the photos above but for this post it shall be Cassava.
It has an earthy taste and though the flesh has a consistency close to that blanched potatoes the root contains a fibrous core that is essentially inedible. The if undercooked it can be rather dry and flaky.
My favorite way of eating Cassava is boiling them in coconut milk and adding some chopped cilantro towards the end. You will want to boil them for quite some time in order to get them properly cooked. Do not attempt t eat them raw as they contain two cyanogenic glucosides, linamarin and lotaustralin, yes ‘cyan’ as in cyanide related. The kind you will usually find packaged in supermarkets has been cleared of any possible issues. In any case it is a small amount of toxicity, but if you are gaining access to the actual root, click and read the previous link, ask those you are purchasing it from on how to prep it or do more research.
You will want to make sure to peel a few centimeters off. Just washing the skin will not suffice as the tuber has a waxy rind that is somewhat unappetizing.
Will post another of this dish with better photos. I had this with Black tea boiled with some fresh chopped ginger.