1952] 



PLANT HUNTING IN ECUADOR 



9 



and always have an ample supply of containers of all sorts on hand, they will not 

 tolerate the soggy, pasty mess which the yuca root assumes when boiled, as it 

 usually is throughout tropical Latin America; instead they steam it, whereupon it 

 becomes a most excellent and tasty substitute for bread. 



The yuca root, however, serves another equally important service in the diet 

 of the Jivaros. From it they make nijamang, their universal drink. The raw yuca 

 root is first peeled, then chewed and spit into a large pottery vessel. It is inter- 

 esting watching an expert at the job, for it is almost a continuous process. A 

 large bite is taken from the root, chewed rapidly for a little while, the excess 

 water from the root being rolled out of the mass with the tongue and expelled from 

 one corner of the mouth, while the chewed mass, by now thoroughly mixed with 

 saliva, is then ejected into the ready container. When about full, it is set aside Q 

 After some hours a little of the previous batch is mixed with the new and the con- 

 tainer is again put aside for a few days to ferment. After proper fermentation, as 

 much as is immediately needed is mixed with water and drunk. 



The biological principles in the preparation of this combined food and drink 

 are simple. The starch of the yuca root must first be converted to sugar, and the 

 only enzymes easily available to them are those contained in their own saliva. 

 The bit of a former batch already has in it the yeasts necessary to begin the con- 

 version to alcohol. And the growing yeasts supply the much-needed vitamins in a 

 diet otherwise low in these necessary items. 



If I were to presume to offer a bit of advice, it would be this. The first time 

 you visit a jivaria, you will be offered a large bowl of nijamango Don't sip it. 

 Drink it without pausing for breath, then smack your lips volubly at the end and 

 nod approvingly. Not to do so is to offend your host right in the beginning— and 

 from there on you will be a social outcast and encounter indifference and obstruc- 

 tion. It is also a good idea to distend your stomach at the same time and pat it 

 satisfiedly, otherwise you will be handed a second bowl. From there on, you will 

 be on your own for, if properly matured, it can be insidiously heady stuff. Also, 

 until one becomes an old hand with it, a too free indulgence produces about the 

 same effect as an over-dose of epsom salts. Anyone with a queasy stomach had 

 better stay out of the Jivaro country. 



Their gardens also contain other food plants. A species of Marantaceae is 

 quite often seen and one of the Cannas also is used. This latter serves a double 

 function; its fleshy rhizomes may be eaten, but more often the leaves are used to 

 cover food utensils or to wrap packets of food for a journey. The papaya also is 

 commonly raised. I am fond of this tropical fruit and on various occasions tried to 

 buy one. They would give me all the green ones I wanted, but they would neither 

 give nor sell me a ripe one. They regularly stew the green papaya, but simply will 

 not use them when ripe. Thinking that perhaps, for some reason, the variety 

 raised by them was inedible when ripe, I surreptitiously took a ripe one and 

 sampled it. It was by no means as delicious as those purposely selected for rich- 

 ness of flavor when ripe, but it was quite acceptable. I never got to the bottom of 

 this taboo on ripe papayas, but there must be some reason for it, otherwise it 

 would never have come into being. The plantain, or cooking banana, has been 

 introduced, but has not made much headway. I join with the Jivaros in deciding 

 that, properly prepared, their yuca is vastly superior in flavor to the plantain. 

 Also yuca stores much better than the plantain, has much less waste, and is much 

 easier to transport on long journeys; furthermore, yuca can be made into nijamhng, 

 whereas the pulp of the plantain would rot and become a putrescent mess before 

 the fermentation process could be accomplished. 



