Colocasia esculenta
2 associations assessed — none with dependable human evidence behind them yet. Strongest first.
A starchy corm grown across the tropics and the Pacific, with flesh ranging from white to lilac. It is the base of poi in Hawaii and of a great many braises and stews elsewhere.
Also known as Dasheen, Eddoe, Kalo, Arbi
What each association actually rests on, and the papers behind it. A rating describes the state of the research, not how impressive the food is. How we rate evidence.
Taro is sometimes said to produce a gentler glucose response than potato because of its small starch granules. The handful of human measurements disagree with each other and are too small to support the claim.
Insufficient evidence. Not enough human research to say anything useful yet.
Cooked taro and poi have a long-standing reputation as gentle, easily tolerated starches, and poi is traditionally given as a first food for infants. That reputation has not been tested against any digestive outcome in a controlled trial.
Insufficient evidence. Not enough human research to say anything useful yet.
Answers are written only from the entries on this page — the same nutrients, compounds, claims and citations you can read above. Nothing is added from outside the database, and every answer lists what it was built from.
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| Nutrient | Amount | % DV |
|---|---|---|
| Macronutrients | ||
| Calories | 112 kcal | 6% |
| Protein | 1.5 g | 3% |
| Total fat | 0.2 g | 0% |
| Carbohydrate | 26.5 g | 10% |
| Fibre | 4.1 g | 15% |
| Total sugars | 0.4 g | — |
| Water | 70.6 g | — |
| Fats | ||
| Saturated fat | 0.041 g | 0% |
| Monounsaturated fat | 0.016 g | — |
| Polyunsaturated fat | 0.083 g | — |
| Cholesterol | 0 mg | 0% |
| EPA (omega-3) | 0 g | — |
| DHA (omega-3) | 0 g | — |
| DPA (omega-3) | 0 g | — |
| Linoleic acid (omega-6) | 0.058 g | — |
| Vitamins | ||
| Vitamin A | 4 µg | 0% |
| Vitamin C | 4.5 mg | 5% |
| Vitamin D | 0 µg | 0% |
| Vitamin E | 2.38 mg | 16% |
| Vitamin K | 1 µg | 1% |
| Thiamin (B1) | 0.095 mg | 8% |
| Riboflavin (B2) | 0.025 mg | 2% |
| Niacin (B3) | 0.6 mg | 4% |
| Pantothenic acid (B5) | 0.303 mg | 6% |
| Vitamin B6 | 0.283 mg | 17% |
| Folate | 22 µg | 6% |
| Vitamin B12 | 0 µg | 0% |
| Choline | 17.3 mg | 3% |
| Minerals | ||
| Calcium | 43 mg | 3% |
| Iron | 0.55 mg | 3% |
| Magnesium | 33 mg | 8% |
| Phosphorus | 84 mg | 7% |
| Potassium | 591 mg | 13% |
| Sodium | 11 mg | 0% |
| Zinc | 0.23 mg | 2% |
| Copper | 0.172 mg | 19% |
| Manganese | 0.383 mg | 17% |
| Selenium | 0.7 µg | 1% |
| Other measured compounds | ||
| Beta-carotene | 35 µg | — |
| Alpha-carotene | 0 µg | — |
| Lycopene | 0 µg | — |
| Lutein + zeaxanthin | 0 µg | — |
| Caffeine | 0 mg | — |
| Ash | 1.2 g | — |
Nutrient values are per 100 g of the USDA reference entry named on this page and vary with variety, growing conditions, storage and preparation.
Source record: Taro, raw (USDA FoodData Central, FDC ID 169308).
% DV uses the FDA Daily Values for adults and children aged 4 and over. A dash means no Daily Value has been established for that nutrient.
Compounds present in meaningful amounts. Presence is banded rather than quantified, because whole-food levels vary enormously with variety, growing conditions, storage and preparation.
Flavonoid pigment
The water-soluble pigments behind red, purple and blue plant colour. Poorly absorbed intact; much of their measurable activity comes from microbial…
In the purple-fleshed cultivars only.
Fermentable carbohydrate
Starch that escapes digestion in the small intestine and is fermented in the colon. Cooking and cooling starchy foods increases the amount present.
Organic acid salt
Bind calcium and can contribute to kidney stone formation in susceptible people. High in spinach, rhubarb, beet greens and almonds; boiling reduces…
Present partly as needle-shaped calcium oxalate raphides, which is why the raw corm is an irritant.
Only effects with real support are listed. If a preparation method is missing, it is because nothing dependable is documented — not because it makes no difference.
Boiling with the water discarded removes a substantial share of the soluble oxalate and destroys the mechanical irritancy of the raphides. Steaming and baking are less effective at removing oxalate because nothing leaches away.
Fermenting cooked taro into poi lowers oxalate further and adds lactic acid bacteria, which is one reason the traditional preparation is more than a texture preference.
Allergies, interactions and intake concerns. Every food gets this section — a reference where everything is uniformly good is not a reference.
Avoid
Raw taro contains needle-like calcium oxalate raphides that embed in the mouth and throat and cause immediate burning, swelling and pain. Thorough cooking is required, and even peeling raw corms causes itching in many people, which is why gloves are traditional.
Worth knowing
Taro is a moderate-to-high oxalate food even after cooking. Anyone with a history of calcium oxalate stones should count it towards a daily oxalate total rather than treating it as a neutral starchy vegetable.
Worth knowing
Taro is an energy staple in the same class as potato and cassava. It is often marketed in the West as a health food, which obscures the fact that most of what it supplies is starch.