Malanga, Yautia

Also Tannia, Tannier, Malanga Amarilla, Yautia Amarilla, Yautia Blanca, Cocoyam

There may be more confusion about this vegetable than any other in the global vegetable bin. The forty or so species, all native to the American tropics, include some of the oldest root crops in the world. Their close resemblance to a related tuber, Colocasia esculenta (most commonly known as taro), has produced a score of common names that overlap the two, blurring the distinguishing characteristics. To further tangle, some species of each produce tubers in shapes and colors almost exactly like the other genus, distinguishable only by the leaves—which most American cooks are not likely to have on hand.