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The plant is a member of the Marantaceae family. Throughout the prehistoric ages and time, it has been cultivated for its edible tubers
They are known for their sweet taste.

It can be consumed fresh or also in culinary dishes
Mostly native to northern South America and the Caribbean.

Description
It is a perennial plant, approximately 1 metre (39 in) in height. that produces egg-shaped tuberous roots 2 centimetres (0.79 in) to 8 centimetres (3.1 in) long. At the end, there are fibrous roots.

Used to make clothing, and medicine. The leaves are large, up to 60 centimetres (24 in) long and 20 centimetres (8 in) wide.

Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Clade: Commelinids
Order: Zingiberales
Family: Marantaceae
Genus: Goeppertia
Species: G. allouia

Along with arrowroot (Maranta arundinacea), squash (Cucurbita moschata), and bottle gourd (Lagenaria siceraria). The plant has early signs of cultivation
In South America around 11,000 years ago. The Las Vegas culture ate, grew G. allouia. They even dried it into ground flour.

Cooking
You can cook or boil the tubers for 15 to 60 minutes. And, like water chestnuts, they retain crispness for a fresh taste.

They can be stored at room temperature for a number of months. So go out on a whim, and try some today.

Bibliography:
Martin, F.W. & Cabanillas, E. (1976) Leren (Calathea allouia), a little known tuberous root crop of the Caribbean (https://www.jstor.org/stable/4253741). Economic Botany 30(3):249-256.

Piperno, Dolores R. (Oct 2011), “The Origins of Plant Cultivation and Domestication in the New World Tropics”, Current Anthropology, Vol 52, No. 54, pp. S 458-459.
Moore, Jerry D. (2014), A Prehistory of South America, Boulder: University Press of Colorado, pp.97-99