Nadia Audhali and Dennis Stevenson
Zamia: Use in the CaribbeanPuerto Rico - Used as a scarcity food only - the stems are grated, washed in salt water, dried and salt is added to produce a flour, which is then baked into loaves. Dominican Republic/Haiti - Zamia pumila known by the Taino Indians as 'Guayiga' or 'guiaros'(which refers only to the roots). For preparation click here Starch made from the guayiga was an export product during the 19th century. It is no longer cultivated commercially for food. In Dominican republic the starch was used to cook with and to stiffen clothes, and in folk medicine as a restorative. Today, the starch is used to make Pan de guayiga/Chola which is bread-like and Manjar blanco/hojaldres which are sweets. to read how Chola is made click here. Fried slices of guayiga were used to kill rats. Used by Africans brought as slaves when cassava was not available (Zanoni 1982). Bahamas/Jamaica - Zamia integrifolia used to make sago pudding where it was a staple during World War II
(Stevenson 1991).
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