Taro

Colocasia esculenta · Tuber

40 pairings

Taro (Colocasia esculenta) is the swollen underground stem, or corm, of a large tropical aroid grown across the warm world as a staple starch. Beneath rough, fibrous brown skin lies dense white-to-greyish flesh, often flecked or veined with lilac, pink or purple; bland and acrid when raw, it turns soft, creamy and nutty with a faint sweetness once thoroughly cooked. Raw taro is mildly toxic and must always be cooked.

Picking a good onedrag

Hard, dry-cut, no shootsSoft, sprouting, browning

Shop firmThe all-rounder: boil, steam, braise, mash or fry.Everyday best

CrownScales tight, one bud showing

HeftFirm through, faint give at the ends

Skin and cut faceSkin dulling, face chalky and sunken

Smell at the cutEarthy, like a raw potato

What to look for, from hard, dry-cut, no shoots to soft, sprouting, browning.

What one gives you

86%

Usable yield

688 g · ends and skin off

800 g

Typical weight

one specimen

Keeping ittap a band

Chilling sensitive: hold it at 7-10 C. Colder than that and the flesh pits and browns inside, so not the fridge.

Humidity

80–95%

Dry air shrivels the corm and cracks its skin; a paper sack or an open crate suits it, and never mist it.

Airflow

Free and open

It has to breathe: sealed in plastic it sweats and rots. An open crate or slatted box, out of the light.

Preparing