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The West Indian arrowroot and I go a long way back.  It has been with me through the best of times and the worst of times- a plant I relied upon in sickness and in health.

Harvested Arrowroot

I grew up knowing it to be a staple in the laundry room, kitchen and medicine cabinet. So, sure, I know what an arrowroot rhizome looks like and of its various uses. But, my close and personal relationship is really with the starch made from the arrowroot rhizome.  Indeed, I’ve been reminded so many times by some family member just how fond I was as an infant of arrowroot porridge made from arrowroot starch... and how "fat" it made me.

Arrowroot in the laundry room: 

I remember a time when quite a few of the women in a village in which I grew up shunned the commercial laundry starch.  They preferred sprinkling their own homemade solution of arrowroot starch/powder and water onto clothes while ironing. These women also sometimes took to rinsing articles of clothing in the same sort of solution as a means of preventing wrinkles. Back then, you could always tell which households used the homemade solution. You just had to look for the family wearing the rather stiff looking garments

Arrowroot in the kitchen:

Arrowroot in the medicine cabinet:

More importantly, I also remember arrowroot being widely celebrated, on account of it being easy to digest, as the poster food for convalescents and weaning/teething infants. In general, people were always recommending regular doses of arrowroot porridge (pap) for any condition which called for foods which can be easily eaten and digested.  These conditions ranged from toothaches to nausea to upset stomachs. Also, back in the day, arrowroot porridge jostled alongside coconut water in people’s medicine cabinet as a major remedy for diarrhea.

The starch/powder aside, I remember the rhizome itself being crushed up to treat bites from the occasional centipede or scorpion.  I also recall crushed rhizomes being used to bring relief to irritated skins.  I leave you this week with the following recipes:

1) Arrowroot porridge/pap:

Source: Memory (You can spice this up by experimenting with cinnamon, bay leaf, nutmeg or even lime)

Ingredients:

1-3 tablespoon arrowroot starch/powder (vary according to thickness desired)

1 cup boiling water

½/ 1 cup milk (optional)

Sugar or honey to taste.

Method:

1. Make a paste using the arrowroot and a little cold water.
2. Add this paste to the boiling water (ensure pot is on low heat) taking care to stir throughout.  The porridge will start turning clear and thick.
3. Add milk- keep stirring until the porridge reaches desired thickness. Add sugar/ honey to taste.  

Source: Anne Paisley- allrecipes.com

1/4 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup white sugar

1 egg

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup arrowroot flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

Method:

1) Cream butter or margarine and sugar. Beat in egg and vanilla.

2) Stir remaining ingredients together and add. Mix well.

3) Roll 1/8 inch thick on floured surface. Cut into 2 1/2 inch rounds. Prick with fork.

4)Grease baking sheet. Bake in 350 degree F (175 degrees C) oven until golden, about 8 to 10 minutes. Allow a bit more baking time if rolled thicker.

Source: asianonlinerecipes.com