Sacred Veggies??
Lotus Rootlets! What are they, you ask? Why should you care? Because they are a part of ancient history, that's why. And more importantly, I am currently eating one in my yummy stir-fry, and wanted to know what the heck this stringy, holey vegetable was. Come educate yourself with me.
They are also known as the Sacred Lotus, and is a magnificent oddity of a plant. It roots in the mud of shallow lakes and ponds, growing leaves that float on the surface as lily pads, or rise up above the water on hard stalks.
The stalk, usually just referred to as "lotus root" are used in many types of Asian cuisine. Typically you'll find them served as thin slices through the root, showing the distinctive pattern. If you haven't had them, the taste is a bit like a more substantial and nutty version of a water chestnut.
Another way that you can sometimes find lotus root prepared is as pickled lotus rootlets, which are immature and more tender lotus roots in brine (pictured here).
The real fun begins when you cut a lotus rootlet in half.... Surprise! These fibrous silky strands can stretch out to many times the length of the lotus root itself. Go Go Gadget spindly, stretchy things!!
The most fascinating fact about these fibers, is that women in Asia actually weave them together for Buddhist monk's robes. In Burma, this practice has been traced back to the 5th-9th Centuries, discovered inscribed upon stone reliefs. The fabric is woven in 100 yard batches, which take about a month and a half to complete. The weavers have estimated that fibers from around 120,000 lotus stems are needed to weave a set of monk's robes. The fabric is then dyed either with chemical or natural dyes to a reddish-brown shade before being cut into patches of different sizes and machine sewn together in rows to resemble the mosaic-like appearance of community owned rice fields prevalent at the time of Buddha.
Never thought you'd get such a history lesson when discussing vegetables and a stir-fry, did ya?
They are also known as the Sacred Lotus, and is a magnificent oddity of a plant. It roots in the mud of shallow lakes and ponds, growing leaves that float on the surface as lily pads, or rise up above the water on hard stalks.
The stalk, usually just referred to as "lotus root" are used in many types of Asian cuisine. Typically you'll find them served as thin slices through the root, showing the distinctive pattern. If you haven't had them, the taste is a bit like a more substantial and nutty version of a water chestnut.Another way that you can sometimes find lotus root prepared is as pickled lotus rootlets, which are immature and more tender lotus roots in brine (pictured here).
The real fun begins when you cut a lotus rootlet in half.... Surprise! These fibrous silky strands can stretch out to many times the length of the lotus root itself. Go Go Gadget spindly, stretchy things!!
The most fascinating fact about these fibers, is that women in Asia actually weave them together for Buddhist monk's robes. In Burma, this practice has been traced back to the 5th-9th Centuries, discovered inscribed upon stone reliefs. The fabric is woven in 100 yard batches, which take about a month and a half to complete. The weavers have estimated that fibers from around 120,000 lotus stems are needed to weave a set of monk's robes. The fabric is then dyed either with chemical or natural dyes to a reddish-brown shade before being cut into patches of different sizes and machine sewn together in rows to resemble the mosaic-like appearance of community owned rice fields prevalent at the time of Buddha. Never thought you'd get such a history lesson when discussing vegetables and a stir-fry, did ya?
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