Vegetables 101: What Is Jicama?

So many vegetables, so many that are unfamiliar! This is the first of an occasional series of posts, quick, easy and practical information about out-of-the-ordinary vegetables. Recipe suggestions included!

WHAT IS JICAMA? Jicama is a large, bulbous root vegetable. A bulb may weigh one or two pounds and has a rough 'n' tough brown skin which should be peeled before eating or cooking. Inside, the flesh is white, wet and crunchy, similar to a raw potato but wetter and crunchier. The flavor is slightly sweet, a little nutty. It's good both raw and cooked, although my own favorite is raw, since it keeps both its crispness and its color over time. Look for it in the produce section

HOW TO PRONOUNCE JICAMA? The word is pronounced [HEE-ka-ma] or [HIK-ka-ma].

OTHER NAMES FOR JICAMA Jicama is also called yambean, Mexican potato and Mexican turnip.

JICAMA & YOU I've listed some good recipes for jicama below but am curious, what do you most like to do with jicama? What do you think about it? Is it easy to find? Do you grow it? Share your story! Bloggers, feel free to share links to your own jicama recipes.

NUTRITION ESTIMATE
(How many calories in Jicama? How many Weight Watchers points in Jicama?) Per 1/4 pound: 43 Calories; 0g Tot Fat; 0g Sat Fat; 0mg Cholesterol; 4mg Sodium; 10g Carb; 5.5g Fiber; 2g Sugar; 1g Protein; Weight Watchers Old Points 0, PointsPlus 1 (although defined as "free" since it's a vegetable)

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Jicama Slaw ♥

A fresh take on coleslaw, substituting wet and crunchy jicama for cabbage. It's a really summery coleslaw, light and bright tasting. Delicious!

~recipe & photo updated and republished 2011~
~more recently updated recipes~

2006: When a guy -- a GUY! -- writes, "I just adore this recipe", it's gotta be good. And let me tell you, Matt Bites is right. I adore this recipe too. (And have you seen his food blog? I adore IT, too!) It's simple. Wet and sweet with jicama. Bright and fresh-tasting. A tad unusual. Low in calories. Low in carbs. It is a perfect make-ahead salad for outdoor picnics. It has no mayonnaise and pairs beautifully with other picnic food like fried chicken, sandwiches, etc.

2011: I'm always pleased -- so pleased! -- when I remake a recipe and find it just as refreshing as its memory. Such was the case with this jicama slaw. It's completely a coleslaw, thanks to the texture, but jicama is a sweet surprise, wetter, brighter, softer than coleslaw. I'll say it again: "I adore this recipe."

WHAT IS JICAMA? I've started a new series of posts, quick introductions to unfamiliar vegetables.
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Easy Coleslaw with Blue Cheese & Apple ♥ Recipe Plus The Economics of Bags of Coleslaw

Today's easy coleslaw recipe: A quick coleslaw made from a bag of coleslaw (or chopped cabbage) and blue cheese dressing with a few apples tucked in for crunch and sweetness. Plus a lesson in coleslaw economics and a smart shopping tip!

So if you could buy cabbage for $.66 or $1.89 or $2.52 a pound, which one would you choose?

For $.66 a pound, buy a cabbage, wash, trim and quick-quick chop it. Assume 11% waste -- but I accounted for that in the price.
For $1.89 a pound (that's almost three times as much), buy a 16-ounce bag of cabbage slaw, already chopped with a little carrot and red cabbage included for color. No waste – just be sure to rinse the cabbage in cold water to freshen it up.
For $2.52 a pound (that's almost four times as much), buy a 12-ounce bag of finely shredded cabbage – that's the only difference between the two bags, well, except price.
Want to see how the two bags were placed side-by-side in the grocery store? Here's my photo on Flickr. I wish I could say it was "accidental" – but see just too many instances where grocery stores seem to intentionally display products, including produce, in ways that influence our choices to the higher-margin product.

Still, life isn't always about cost and there's no doubt that "convenience" matters. So no judgment, we each get to make our own decisions, what's right for us. Some nights? A bag of coleslaw is as good as it's gonna get.

And this coleslaw is worth making – no matter who does the chopping. Summer easy, 'tis the season.
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How to Eat More Vegetables: Tip #13

We all know we should eat more vegetables. But how, how do we do that, really? What real-life tips and ideas work? How can we build our lives around the healthiest of all foods, vegetables? Every Saturday, the 'veggie evangelist' shares practical tips and ideas from her own experience, her readers and other bloggers.

And now for this week's tip:

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Beet, carrot, mustard greens and celery juice

The hot spiciness of the mustard greens removes the necessity for adding salt or spices to this juice. The mustard heat sensation is first felt on the tip of the tongue, spreading throughout the mouth. This quickly mellows to an aftertaste of carrot and beet.

Beet, carrot, mustard greens and celery juice

Ingredients:

1 small beet, approximately 4 cm. (1.5 in.) in diameter

2 celery sticks

2 carrots

2 - 3 mustard green leaves, stalks removed

Beet, carrot, celery stalks and mustard greens

Preparation:

1. Wash all the vegetables. 

2. Slice the mustard greens into strips. Cut the celery stalks into small chunks. Pulp all in a juicer. 

Mustard greens and celery juice

3. Slice carrots into chunks. Pulp in the juicer.

Mustard greens, celery and carrot juice

4. Cut beet into chunks. Pulp in the juicer. Decant the juice into a glass. 

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Clean-Out-the-Veggie-Drawer Soup with a Don't-Throw-It-Away Secret Ingredient ♥

Don't pitch the Parmesan rind!

Today's concept recipe: A quick, easy and flexible way to use up the last bits of vegetables from the vegetable bin, just before the next trip to the farmers market, the next CSA delivery.

So if I told you that this soup costs absolutely ZERO to make, would you believe me? It's true.

You see, we vegetable lovers, we can't help ourselves: when fresh produce is so fresh and beautiful, we buy more than we can ever consume in the few days vegetables stay quite fresh. ("Another eggplant? Sure, isn't it pretty?! And oh, did you see the carrots? We must have a few of those too.") CSA subscribers, I'm told, love getting a new stash of fresh vegetables but feel guilty when some of last week's delivery (and the week's before too?) languishes in the vegetable bin. Too often, we let the vegetables hang around too long, past saving.

This recipe -- one of the "concept recipes" that we all love so much -- is my latest way to "save" all those last bits of vegetables, not gone bad but none-too-fresh either, from the compost pile or the garbage can.

But the secret ingredient? I bet lots of people throw it away too, since it really isn't edible anymore.
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Beet veggie smoothie

This beet smoothie is a  delicious way to get your daily portion of vegetables. It is like a savoury vegetable salad with just a little punch from the fresh ginger. In addition, the olive oil is great for the health of your nervous system.

Beet veggie smoothie

                                                    Yield: 2 smoothies

Ingredients:

1 beet, approximately 5 c. (2 in.) in diameter

6 beet leaves, including stalks

1 sweet red bell papper

1 tomato

1 carrot

½ teaspoon grated fresh ginger

1 - 2 celery stalks 

6 - 8 stems of cilantro

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

¼ cup cold water

salt and pepper to taste

Beet, beet leaves, sweet red bell pepper, tomato, ginger
celery, cilantro and carrot

Preparation:

1. Wash the vegetables. Peel the beet. Chop it into chunks. Place into a blender together with ¼ cup water. Pulse on 'High'.

2. Add chopped tomato, bell pepper and carrot to blender. Blend until pureed.

3. Add the remaining ingredients. Blend to a fine pureed. Adjust seasonings.

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