Cassava is very essential in Nigerian food industry as many our food is derived from cassava which is a woody shrub (Manihot esculenta) that is grown in the tropical regions. It is also called Yuca and is associated with Tapioca in South America. The starchy tuberous root of this tropical tree is used as food of different kinds in Nigeria.
Cassava thrives well on mid dry to clay and loamy soil. Being a perennial crop, it has also become a major staple food in other tropical regions and as well as a good export earner for farmers in Nigeria, Indonesia, Philippines, and Brazil.
To get the best of your production as a cassava farmer, you should plant the resistant variety so as to get the maximum harvest and prevent damages from pests. Cassava is the source of the following food staples in Nigeria:
1. The Cassava Tuber As Food
A cassava tuber variety could be cooked and enjoyed with varieties of stews also, it could be pounded and enjoyed like the usual pounded yam. But not all variety of cassava can be eaten that way as many are known to be highly toxic when eaten in such form.
2. Garri – Fried Cassava
This form of cassava food is processed by grinding and squeezing out the starchy content. The residue is left for three day to ferment (Ijebu Garri) thereafter, it is fried with into sand-like grains and the quality is determined by the dryness. That is, the drier the better. Other types like the popular Bendel Garri is fried immediately after grinding and squeezing out the water without leaving it to ferment.
3. Fufu
Fufu is obtained by soaking the tuber into water for between four to five day to get it softened, then manually remove the chaff. The Cassava preparation follows similar process to garri but instead of frying, it is cooked and pounded into a pulp of various hardness and eaten with Nigerian soups such as the popular Igbo’s Egusi soup.
4. Amala
Cassava is processed into amala first by cutting it into pieces, soak it for two or three days, drying and grinding it into flour, the flour is then prepared similar to fufu and enjoyed with the popular Yoruba’s Ewedu soup.
5. Starch
The startch is usually a by-product in the garri process. Apart from being useful in other domestic application the cassava starch is a favorite food among the Urhobo people of Delta State. And they eat it just like Amala and Garri.