Elephant Food Yam

The plant species is originated from South and Southeast Asia. The plant is also widely distributed in Indonesia and can grow in gardens, rice fields, and pond edges. The plant is traditionally used as a food supplement, in fish food, and in cultural ceremonies. 

Suweg (Indonesia), you bing mo yu (China), suranah (Sanskrit).

Elephant food yam thrives on secondary forests and highly disturbed areas. The plant can grow in partial shade or fully exposed conditions in fertile and well-drained black or sandy loam soil. The plant may occur in seal level up until 800 m altitudes. A hot and humid condition is preferable.

• Roots - roots are modified into the fleshy tuber, tuber dark brown, depressed globose, annulate, with root scars visually prominent.
• Stems - above-ground stem absent and replaced by stem-like leaf stalk, the leaf stalk is solitary, flashy, green with pale green dots pattern.
• Leaves - the leaf blade is divided into numerous leaflets, the leaflets are green or pale green, orbicular, oval, ovate, obovate, elliptic, elliptic-oblong, elliptic-lanceolate, or lanceolate.
• Flowers - held by a single spadix, the spathe is dark brown or maroon inside, pale green with white spot outside, the spathe is velvet-like, funnel-shaped, the flower produces an unpleasant odor. 
• Fruits - berries, elongated, green to yellow or bright red during maturation, in close or slightly distant arrangement.

Easily propagated by tuber. 

Protein, carbohydrates, flavonoids, tannins, alkaloids, and saponin.

• The plant species tubers are traditionally used to treat various health conditions including digestive complaints such as vomit, anorexia, dyspepsia, flatulence, colic, and constipation.
• The same organ is also used to treat breath-related medical conditions such as cough, bronchitis, and asthma.
• The tuber is also believed to treat anemia, seminal weakness, fatigue, dysmenorrhoea, liver problem, tumor, hemorrhoids, and numerous illnesses. The tuber is also can be used as a tonic and aphrodisiac.

• Siapkan umbi suweg, lalu bersihkan umbi dari kotoran dan tanah kemudian kupas dan cuci dengan air bersih. Potong-potong umbi kemudian rendam menggunakan air kapur atau garam kira-kira 1 jam hingga getah pada umbi hilang.
• Setelah bersih, keringkan umbi di bawah sinar matahari atau oven dengan suhu 50 °C selama 18 jam.
• Tumbuk atau blender umbi kering lalu ayak untuk mendapatkan tepung halus ukuran 60 mesh.
• Simpan dalam wadah bersih dan kedap udara.