Abstract: A method and composition for making food products for benefiting health, including: inoculating dryland taro poi with fermented wetland taro poi; fermenting the inoculated dryland taro poi; dehydrating the fermented dryland taro poi; rehydrating the dehydrated dryland taro poi; pasteurizing the rehydrated dryland taro poi; reinoculating the pasteurized dryland taro poi with a poi starter culture; and adding nutrients to the reinoculated dryland taro poi. The poi starter culture includes a probiotic organism having a concentration of at least 2000 cfu/g. The nutrients added to the dryland taro poi include one or more selected from the group consisting of: xylose and inulin. The dryland taro poi and the wetland taro poi are in an amount in a ratio of 40:1 by weight, dryland to wetland.