Tapioca

Tapioca is a starch extracted from cassava (Manihot esculenta). This species is native to Brazil but spread throughout the Americas. The plant was later spread by Portuguese and Spanish explorers to Africa, the Philippines and most of the West Indies, being now cultivated worldwide. In India, the term "tapioca" is used to represent the root of the plant (cassava), rather than the starch. In Vietnam, it is called bột năng. In Indonesia, it is called singkong. In the Philippines, it is called sago. In Malaysia it is called "Ubi Kayu".

The name tapioca is derived from the word tipi'óka, the name for this starch in the Tupí language of South America. This Tupí word refers to the process by which the starch is made edible. However, as the word moved out of Brazil it came to refer to similar preparations made with other esculents.

Tapioca is a staple food in some regions and is used worldwide as a thickening agent, mainly in foods. Tapioca is gluten-free, almost completely protein-free, and contains practically no vitamins. In Britain, the word tapioca often refers to a milk pudding thickened with arrowroot, while in Asia the sap of the sago palm is often part of its preparation.