Malletok

Malletok (from Elvish melle meaning "sugar" and Aquan ttokk meaning "grass") is a semi-aquatic grass found in brackish swamps in the Near Isles and along the southern regions of the Liberty Coast. The same word is used to refer varyingly to the plant as a whole, the tough stalk used for weaving, or the nutritious, edible root.
The malletok plant grows to roughly 3-4 ft tall. It has a hard seed pod at the top, roughly 6-8 inches in length, that is yellow-orange when young and deep scarlet when fully mature. These seed pods are edible when cooked in their young stage, resembling carrots but with a slight horseradish-like taste. Once matured, though, breaking the pod results in an explosion of fluff and seed pods that spread easily via wind.
The stalks of the malletok plant make for first-rate weaving material. They are easy to shape and twist when first picked, and light, sturdy, and nearly waterproof once dried. Near Isles basket-weaving traditions rely heavily on braided, woven, and painted malletok.
Malletok root is sweet and starchy, and is an excellent source of carbohydrates, fiber, and several important vitamins. It can be grilled or boiled and eaten whole, or ground into a flour that is used for baking, as a thickening agent in stews and jellies, and as an ingredient in dishes like Elfiltë.
Despite the usefulness of many parts of the malletok plant, efforts to domesticate it have largely failed and been abandoned. It only grows well in the particular acidic, swampy soil near the edges of brackish wetlands; expanding this to larger growing environments (the way a cranberry bog or rice paddy would) tends to cause the malletoks in the middle to wilt quickly. Thus, villagers in the Near Isles still gather malletok by hand to this day.

Type

Biomaterial

Taste

very sweet (roots sharp and grassy (stalk slightly pungent (young seed pod)