Historians believe that mankind has been cultivating and using arrowroot for well over 7000 years. During my childhood, nearly every household in Kerala had a patch of arrowroot and of turmeric. All members of large joint families participated in planting, tending, harvesting and processing of organic produce of the finest quality. Alas, with the change in lifestyle and the nuclearisation of families, all that has been forgotten, except in a few pockets still tenaciously holding on to tradition.
Freshly dug arrowroot rhizomes
We plant a little arrowroot every year. At this time of the year, the pearly white rhizomes are dug up, washed and scraped to remove the scaly outer skin. Then, they are cut into chunks and ground to paste. The watery paste is left to settle. Every hour or so, the clear water at the top of the vessel is drained off and fresh water is added. The paste is stirred and left to settle again. This process is repeated several times during the day to remove the sap. On the morning of the second day, the thick starch sediment at the bottom is spread out on large platters to dry for 2 to 3 days in the hot sun. It turns to dry powder which has a fine crumbling, crystalline texture to the touch. I store this precious powder in small airtight containers which keeps well for years. A teaspoonful (5 gm) of this pure arrowroot powder suffices to make a delicious glass of hot arrowroot. Excellent for digestion and for cooling the body, a drink of arrowroot helps relieve a queasy stomach and goes a long way in aiding to fight diarrhea. For an upset stomach, it is best to take an arrowroot drink with a pinch of salt, but without milk. As a health drink with the power to uplift your spirits, you can enjoy it with milk and sugar.
Arrowroot drink with delicious dudali
While buying arrowroot powder from the market, please beware of adulterated powders. The most common of adulterants are bleached cornflour, potato starch and tapioca powder. You can recognize genuine powder by its crispy crystalline feel. Do make and enjoy!
| Prep Time | 1 minute |
| Cook Time | 2 minutes |
| Servings | glass |
- 5 gm arrowroot powder
- 10 gm sugar
- 1 pod cardamom
- 50 ml boiled milk
- 250 ml water
Ingredients
| |
- Shell and crush the cardamom seeds. Set aside.
- Put the arrowroot powder, the sugar and the water into a pan and set on high heat. Stir continously till it boils. This will take less than 2 minutes.
- Pour in the milk and tip in the crushed cardamom. Stir and switch off the heat.
- Your delicious arrowroot drink is ready to enjoy! Serve hot.
You can make chocolate arrowroot drink for your kids by stirring in 2 teaspoons of cocoa powder.
Excellent Are there some savoury items you can prepare using Arrow Root powder.
Thank you for asking and sorry for the late reply. Yes, of course. You can use arrowroot powder to make dosas. My mother used to make us dosas with arrowroot and black gram when we were kids. It can also be used in place of cornflour in soups and curries, as well as in biscuits and cookies.
I made this drink this morning because I was looking for a cornstarch alternative to a Mexican drink we call ‘atole’. It’s basically the same recipe only with cornstarch instead of arrowroot starch. We also sometimes add fresh puréed fruit like strawberries or sometimes chocolate. This came out perfectly delicious and tasted almost identical to the Mexican version, I made it and no one noticed the difference. Thank you! 🙂
Thank you so much, dear Elah. So glad you liked it!
Hello how’s often can you take arrow roots powder for the day..and can you take everyday..I have IBS and HERTIA HERNIA and my STOMACH LINING IS WEAKEN I was told to use arrow roots it can help to strengthen my stomach lining
Hi Janice, thank you for asking! Please do consult your doctor before taking the arrowroot powder. If your doctor has advised you to take arrowroot, please go ahead and do so.
Can this be made with plant milks? Which is best?
At times, I use coconut milk instead of cows milk, and jaggery (unrefined cane sugar) instead of sugar. Don’t forget the cardamom!
I found the information very helpful. I wasn’t aware that arrowroot could be used in so many different ways. Thank you for taking out time to create this post.