This staple in the Iwati cuisine is served in a variety of ways, including fried, baked, in soups, or dipped into sauces. They range from a classic mash eaten as the first meal of the day to fried and sprinkled with sugar and syrups to eat as dessert.
Lab plants are grown in many habitats across the world, and they go by many names. Because the lab originated near Iwati, it is referred to most by its Yìlmuhi name. Lab plants are cross-pollinated by various insects, but they are also self-fertilizing.
The lab is an herbaceous perennial plant. It produces flowers that vary in color from white, purple, pink, or blue with white stripes. After flowering, lab plants produce small fruits that contain many seeds, but those fruits are poisonous. It is only the tubers that are used for food.