Goeppertia allouia
(Aubl.) Borchs. & S. Suarez
Guinea arrowroot, Sweet corn-tuber
(c) Alexis López Hernández, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Alexis López Hernández
(c) Luis Humberto Vicente-Rivera, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Luis Humberto Vicente-Rivera
(c) Alexis López Hernández, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Alexis López Hernández
What to Eat
Edible parts: Tubers
The tubers are cooked and eaten, with a taste like sweet corn and a crisp texture.
Where to Find It
It is a tropical plant.
Amazon, Brazil, Caribbean, Central America, Colombia, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guatemala, Haiti, Hispaniola, Jamaica, Leeward Is., Mexico, Peru, Puerto Rico, South America, Trinidad & Tobago, Venezuela, West Indies, Winward Is.,
How to Identify
A herb. It grows 1 m tall. The roots are tuber shaped and 2-8 cm at the end of the roots. The leaves are 60 cm long by 20 cm wide.
Nutrition Score: 2/100
| Part | Moisture | kJ | kcal | Protein | Vit A | Vit C | Iron | Zinc |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tubers | — | — | 6.6 | — | — | — | — | — |
How to Grow
It can be grown from rhizomes.
Wikipedia
Source ↗Goeppertia allouia (syn. Calathea allouia), known as lerén or lairén in Spanish, and also known in English as Guinea arrowroot, and sweet corn root, is a plant in the arrowroot family, native to northern South America and the Caribbean. The name "allouia" is derived from the Carib name for the plant. Lerén is a minor food crop in the American tropics, but was one of the earliest plants domesticated by pre-historic Amerindians in South America.
Names & Synonyms
Lairen, Leren
References (2)
- Ulian, T., et al, 2020, Unlocking plant resources to support food security and promote sustainable agriculture. Plants, People, Planet. 2020;2:421–445.
- World Checklist of Useful Plant Species 2020. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
