101 Wednesday: Jicama

This weekend I went upstate to my aunt and uncle, Eva and Payam's house. It was Eva's birthday and it was a perfect weekend to celebrate outdoors. I also thought it would be a great opportunity to shoot a quick 101 Wednesday video since they have a beautiful back yard. I asked Eva what she thought I should do my video on for this week, and she mentioned Jicama. She told me she had found a recipe for it once and didn't enjoy it. I was up for the challenge to change her mind about this delicious root vegetable.

Jicama (pronounced hi-ka-mah) is a super crisp root vegetable that has a nutty, fresh and slightly sweet taste. The texture inside is really similar to a crisp apple, but the flavor is much softer. It's so perfect to use as a substitute for chips. You can dip jicama into guacamole or your favorite dips. I also like cutting it up into tropical salads. I personally don't enjoy cooked Jicama, so that's why I'm sharing two ways to enjoy it raw.

I served the Jicama Salad and Jicama Chips to Eva and a bunch of her friends for her birthday. Everyone seemed to be happily surprised about how yummy the veggie was - and most importantly, the birthday girl changed her mind about her feelings towards jicama =)

Jicama Chips
Peel the jicama's skin using a knife, you can watch my video to learn how. Cut pieces into chip size bites and serve with fresh guacamole or your favorite dip.

Guacamole 
by Sarah Farsh May, 27 2012

• 3 avocados
• 1/2 bunch fresh cilantro, diced
• 1/2 small onion, diced
• 1 jalapeno, diced
• 3 fresh limes, juiced

Mash all ingredients together until smooth.

Jicama Salad
by Sarah Farsh May, 27 2012

• 4 persian cucumbers, sliced
• half bunch cilantro, diced
• 3 carrots, shredded
• half small onion, diced
• half jicama, peeled and chopped into cubes
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 2 limes, juiced
• 1 mango, skinned and diced
• 1 jalapeno pepper, diced (leave out if your a baby)