What Is the Nutritional Value of Tapioca?

Tapioca is a starch that comes from the root of a shrub-like plant called Cassava native to South America. It is most commonly used as a food thickener, and is perhaps best known as an ingredient in tapioca pudding. By itself, tapioca is nearly flavorless and contributes little nutritional value.

Etyomology

• The word tapioca comes from the Brazilian Tupi word "tipi'oca." Ty means "juice," pya, means "heart," and oca, means "remove." Removing the heart and juice of the root is how tapioca is extracted.

Production

• The root is harvested and the pulp inside is boiled down to release a cyanide based toxin. From here, it can take many different forms.

Types

• Tapioca can be found in pearl, flake, powder or stick form. The pearls are found in tapioca pudding, while the flakes and powders dissolve completely when used as thickening agents, so they are not noticeable in the way that the pearl form is. In most forms they are colorless, but some are found dyed different colors to denote the type of Cassava plant or producer the tapioca comes from.

Common Uses

• Tapioca is commonly used to thicken puddings, jellies and soups. It is also used as a binder in pharmaceutical tablets and as a thickener in natural paints. When processed as sticks or strips, tapioca can be fried or garnished and eaten, or put through a fermenting process to create a slightly alcoholic beverage. Tapioca takes the form of dessert in many South American and African countries.

Nutrition

• It is gluten and protein free and has little nutritional value. Because it is a starch, it is mainly made up of carbohydrates. The nutritional value of tapioca is usually determined by what recipe it is used in. One serving of dry tapioca is 153 calories, 0.4 grams of fat, 10 grams of carbohydrates and 0.2 grams of protein. When it is fried and takes the form of tapioca chips, these figures increase to 490 calories, 24 grams of fat, 66 grams of carbohydrates and 2 grams of protein.

Considerations

• Tapioca can be made to have a high nutritional value depending on what it is added to. Alone, it has little value, but when it is combined with fruit to thicken jelly or to a low calorie soup, the nutritional value increases dramatically. Tapioca is versatile and can be used in many ways.

Warnings

• Konzo, or Matakassa, is a paralytic disease that is caused by the toxins that should be released during the process of extracting tapioca. In order to contract this disease, you would have to exclusively eat a large amount of tapioca containing the cyanide based toxin for an extended period of time. Because tapioca is a starch, it can raise blood sugar dramatically in individuals with diabetes.