Jicama
a new vegetable
When trying to decide what
new vegetable or fruit to try I had a hard time at first deciding as I casually
browsed the grocery store. My wife and I went to her parent’s house and we were
discussing what might be a good food to try. My wife’s grandmother (who we call
moo) asked me if I had ever tried Jicama. She said that it was a sweet
vegetable and that I should try it. I didn’t know what a Jicama was so I
decided to do some research. According to nutrition-and-you.com Jicama is a
root vegetable grown in Central America, South Asia, Caribbean, and South
America. It’s commonly called the Mexican water chestnut or Mexican turnip.
Nutrition-and-you.com
list several health benefits of this root vegetable. It’s relatively low
calorie as it has about 35 calories per 100 grams. It also has a good amount of
fiber, antioxidants, minerals and vitamins. One interesting fact is. They also
state
It is one of the finest
sources of dietary fiber; particularly excellent source
of oligofructose
inulin, a soluble dietary fiber. The root pulp provides 4.9 mg or 13% of fiber.
Inulin is a zero calorie sweet inert carbohydrate. It does not undergo
metabolize inside the human body which make jicama an ideal sweet snack for
diabetics and dieters. (Web)
It’s also a good source
of vitamin C and B.
It looks like a turnip
with a golden brown skin. The skin feels rough like a potato. When picking your
Jicama you want it well formed, round and firm. It can be stored like a potato
and will stay good for a couple weeks.
When prepping it you
should peel off the fibrous skin and wash it with water. The skin must be
discarded as it has Rotenene which is an organic poison used as a natural
pesticide. You can the cube, slice or chop it to your individual preference
depending on your dish.
I decided to try it raw
as moo had said that was how she ate it. We cut the Jicama down the middle and
the cut it into slices. The meat of the vegetable has a white potato like
appearance. The Vegetable is slightly sweet and has an apple like texture. It
has some juiciness to it sort of like a potato. Personally didn’t care for it
because it had a bitter earthy taste.
Overall it was an interesting
experience trying a new vegetable. Even though I didn’t like it raw I may be
willing to try it in some recipes. It may be good for a stir fry to give it
that crunchy vegetable that is sometimes needed. Despite not liking the
vegetable raw I see some real potential in some recipes.
Here is a link where I found my information
Your research added a lot to your post, and your description of its appearance and texture is also really good! I'd suggest turning the word jicama into your hyperlink. How does its taste compare to that of other water chestnuts?
ReplyDeleteI have seen these in the store, but I never really knew what they were. They sound like they may be better cooked then raw. How did you peel it? Does it peel like a potato or do you have to peel it like an apple?
ReplyDeleteI didn't peel it. I just cut it into pieces I could eat.
Deletethe vegetable cuts like an apple. I usually cut fruits and veggies instead of peeling them (except carrots and potatoes)
DeleteI have never seen one of these. It looks like the outside would be hard to deal with. Was it hard to peel? Did you look at any recipes that it could be used in? Did your wife try it? Is there anything that you've eaten that the taste is comparable to? I'm curious to see if I want to try one of these.
ReplyDeleteNever heard of one of these before. I like how you added the nutritional information on the vegetable. It is always nice to figure out how healthy the food you are eating actually is. I would have to agree with you on trying it raw. It doesn't look too appetizing, but I'm sure if you add it into a recipe like stew or something it might be good.
ReplyDeleteYour research is interesting. I had never heard of this vegetable either. I agree with Audra that your link could be incorporated into the text rather than putting it at the end. I'd also be interested what sort of recipes call for this ingredient. You could add links to that at the end instead. Did its taste remind you of anything you've had before or was it unique?
ReplyDeleteThe taste was unique and I will look into moving the link. Thanks
DeleteI really appreciate all the background. It was a really efficient use of space. I think hyperlinking rather than including the source at the end might work better for a blog post--it feels a little out of place at the end. Also, I feel like this is jam-packed with all the information I need and I really like that, but I don't really get a sense of your voice. A creative flourish or two and reading back through it for style and flow might help make it even better.
ReplyDeleteYou included a lot ofnisefulninformstion but the tone of the post sounded a bit mechanic. I also have never heard of this vegetable but I do know I don't like water chestnuts because they are crunchy like apples but lack any real flavor. If these do have some type of flavor or a level of sweetness, I'd be opened into trying them. You describe the texture really well but what types of foods are they usually cooked with?
ReplyDelete