Pachyrhizus erosus
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This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. (April 2010) |
| Pachyrhizus erosus | |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| (unranked): | Rosids |
| Order: | Fabales |
| Family: | Fabaceae |
| Genus: | Pachyrhizus |
| Species: | P. erosus |
| Binomial name | |
| Pachyrhizus erosus (L.) Urb. |
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Pachyrhizus erosus, commonly known as Jícama (/ˈhɪkəmə/; Spanish pronunciation: [ˈxikama]; from Nahuatl xicamatl, [ʃiˈkamatɬ]), Mexican Yam, or Mexican Turnip, is the name of a native Mexican vine, although the name most commonly refers to the plant's edible tuberous root. Jícama is a species in the genus Pachyrhizus in the bean family (Fabaceae). Plants in this genus are commonly referred to as yam bean, although the term "yam bean" can be another name for jícama. The other major species of yam beans are also indigenous within the Americas.
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Botany[edit]
The jícama vine can reach a height of 4–5 metres given suitable support. Its root can attain lengths of up to 2 m and weigh up to 20 kg. The heaviest jícama root ever recorded weighed 23 kg and was found in 2010 in the Philippines (where they are called 'singkamas').[1]
The root's exterior is yellow and papery, while its inside is creamy white with a crisp texture that resembles raw potato or pear. The flavor is sweet and starchy, reminiscent of some apples or raw green beans, and it is usually eaten raw, sometimes with salt, lemon, or lime juice and chili powder. It is also cooked in soups and stir-fried dishes.
In cooking[edit]
Jícama is often paired with chili powder, cilantro, ginger, lemon, lime, oranges, red onion, salsa, sesame oil, grilled fish and soy sauce.[2] It can be cut into thin wedges and dipped in salsa. In Mexico, it is popular in salads, fresh fruit combos, fruit bars, soups, and other cooked dishes. In contrast to the root, the remainder of the jícama plant is very poisonous; the seeds contain the toxin rotenone, which is used to poison insects and fish.[3]
Spread to Asia[edit]
Spaniards spread cultivation of jícama from Mexico to Philippines, from there it went to China and other parts of Southeast Asia, where notable uses of raw jícama include popiah, fresh "lumpia" in the Philippines and salads in Singapore and Malaysia such as yusheng and rojak.
In the Philippines, jícama is known locally as singkamas and usually eaten fresh with condiments sucha as rice vinegar and sprinkled with salt, or with bagoong (shrimp paste).
Jícama has become popular in Vietnamese food as an ingredient in pie, where it is called cây củ đậu (in northern Vietnam) or củ sắn or sắn nước (in southern Vietnam). It is known by its Chinese name bang kuang to the ethnic Chinese in Southeast Asia. In Mandarin Chinese, it is known as dòushǔ(豆薯) or liáng shǔ (涼薯), as sa1 got3 沙葛 (same as "turnip") in Yue Chinese/Cantonese, and as bông-kong 芒光 in Teochew, where the word is borrowed from the Malay, and as dìguā 地瓜 in Guizhou province and several neighboring provinces of China, the latter term being shared with sweet potatoes.
In Japanese it is known as 葛芋 (kuzu-imo). The Thai name is มันแกว (man kaeo). In Bengali, it is known as shankhalu, literally translating to "conch (shankha) potato (alu)" for its shape, size and colour. In Hindi it is known as mishrikand (मिश्रीकंद). In Telugu it is known as kandha. It is eaten during fast (उपवास) in Bihar (India) and is known as "kesaur" (केसौर). In Burma it is known as စိမ်းစားဥ. In Malay it is known by the name ubi sengkuang.
In Laos, it is called man pao. Here it is a lot smaller and tastes a little sweeter than the Mexican type. It is used as a snack by peeling off the outer layer of the skin, then cutting into bite sizes for eating like eating an apple or a pear.
In Indonesia, Jícama is known as bengkuang. This root crop is only known by people in Sumatra and Java. Mostly they eat it at fresh fruit bars or mix it in the rujak (a kind of spicy fruit salad). Padang city in West Sumatra is called "the city of bengkuang". Local people might have thought that this jícama is the "indigenous crop" of Padang. The crop has been grown everywhere in this city and it has become a part of their culture[citation needed].
Nutrition[edit]
Jícama is high in carbohydrates in the form of dietary fiber. It is composed of 86-90% water; it contains only trace amounts of protein and lipids. Its sweet flavor comes from the oligofructose inulin (also called fructo-oligosaccharide) which is a prebiotic. Jicama is high in vitamins C, A and B, along with calcium and phosphorus.
Storage[edit]
Jícama should be stored dry, between 12°C and 16°C (53°F and 60°F). Colder temperatures will damage the root; do not refrigerate. A fresh root stored at an appropriate temperature will keep for a month or two.
References[edit]
- ^ 'Heaviest' Singkamas Found in Ilocos
- ^ Green, Aliza (2004). Field Guide to Produce. Quirk Books. p. 194. ISBN 1-931686-80-7.
- ^ Duke, James A. (1992). "Handbook of phytochemical constituents of GRAS herbs and other economic plants". Dr. Duke's Phytochemical and Ethnobotanical Databases. CRC Press. Retrieved June 25, 2010.
External links[edit]
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