Jicama Salad

I grew up in Israel. At the heart of every Israeli meal there is an Israeli salad. The traditional salad is made of tomatoes and cucumbers. Some people add parsley for extra zest. The beauty of vegetables is that every combination creates a masterpiece of flavors, colors, and textures. If you are courageous, you can even add fruit, which brings more variety and essence. Make your salad interesting! Be creative, try new combinations.

As I grew older, I broke away from the traditionally prescribed mixture of tomatoes, and cucumbers and started exploring new combos of flavors and colors. For the purpose of this salad, I experimented with Jicama.

Jicama is a round and bulbous root vegetable native to Mexico, as well as Central and South America. This tropical legume is also referred to as yam bean. The taproot is the only part that is safe for consumption and therefore, the skin, leaves, stems, and seeds should be removed before use. The consistency of the vegetable is a combination between a potato and a pear, but the flavor is as sweet as an apple. Jicama is low in calories but is rich in inulin, a fiber that helps in facilitating a healthy gut flora. It also contains vitamin C and potassium.

Aside for all its nutritional value, this root can add a nice crunch to your salad. Eat the rainbow! In this salad, I mixed zucchini, cucumbers, Jicama, tomatoes, and carrots. Occasionally, I like to add some arugula, spinach, kale, and brussel sprouts. I cut them separately and keep them in a sealed container until I am ready to serve the salad. If I add them prematurely they tend to spoil faster than the rest of the vegetables. Same goes for the spices. One of my favorite appliances is the chopper. It allows me to cut perfect squares every single time. The tomatoes should be sliced by hand to prevent the excess tomato juice in your salad. Carrots should be cut into cubes or shredded. You decide. Whatever makes you happy!

5-6 servings:

Ingredients

2 zucchini cut into cubes

3 small cucumbers cut into cubes

1 chopped Jicama

½ a bag of sliced grape tomatoes

½ a cup of shredded carrots

Dressing: (mix all together)

¼ cup of olive oil

½ cup of lemon juice

salt and pepper to taste

7 Comments

  1. Cobus Bester
    March 26, 2014
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      March 26, 2014
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