A
Toast to the Fabulous Agave'
There
is little so wonderfully refreshing as a salt rimed margarita at the
end of a hot desert day. Native to the Chihuahua desert, the agave
plant, sometimes called the century plant, is the mother of tequila
and has been used in a multitude of ways for thousands of years. In
Jalisco, Mexico, the agave is grown like a crop in row after row of
the large spiky plants. The waste material of the blue agave plant,
the only one allowed to be used in the production of tequila, is
re-used to create a paper.
One
of the latest uses of interest to Cenizo Journal readers would be as
a source of bio fuel. Because of how quickly it grows, the flowering
head grows up to a foot a day, the agave is being investigated for
use as a bio fuel. It's use could help solve the food vs. fuel debate
regarding corn as a bio fuel.
Because
the fresh sap of the plant causes contact dermatitis (itching and
swelling of the skin) and the heart is poisonous if eaten raw,
boiling or roasting the plant is necessary before using it. Agave has
been used in the Southwest for more then 4000 years, the pointed ends
of leaves were traditionally used as a sewing needle or leather awl.
The fiber of the leaves is fashioned into rope much as the yucca
plant is used. The cleaned fibers can be made into cloth. The heart
of the plant, much like a giant artichoke, can be cut out, roasted
and eaten. It has a rich, mild flavor. Cooking is essential!! This is
the point at which I ask “who figured out this bit?”
As
a precursor to tequila it was fermented into a beer like drink. The
fermented liquid is then distilled into tequila.
A
boiled preparation of the juice or sap, of the fine agave plant is
antibacterial, antibiotic, fungicidal and antiviral.
Many
people have heard of or use the processed nectar of the agave plant
as a sweetener, it is thought of as having a low glycemic index.
Short of pure liquid fructose, processed agave syrup has the single
highest amount of fructose possible. The low index is on the
unprocessed, raw nectar. So skip thinking that agave syrup/nectar is
a great alternative to table sugar and learn the other ways that this
fabulous plants can be and has been used.
Maybe
on this trip to West Texas you can produce your own walking stick
from the stalk of the agave. In the evening when the sun is going
down use your margarita to toast a wonderful gift from nature.
