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Jicama Mexican Yam Bean Pachyrhizus Erosus Seeds
Packet of 10+ home grown seeds!
Let me start by saying the seed pods and seeds are toxic and not a food.
They contain rotenone, a toxic substance that reliably kills insects and is often used as an organic insecticide.
It just as reliably kills fish so planting around the edge of your goldfish pond isn’t a good idea.
Though it’s insecticidal properties are interesting and very well known, that isn’t what most folks grow it for.
They grow it for the delicious crunchy white Tuberous roots!
They can be eaten raw or cooked and are often used as a substitute for water chestnut or bamboo shoots.
Unlike potatoes, they don’t go that gross brown colour if you cut them but don’t use then straight away, and once boiled all you need to do is give them a quick rub and the skins just slide off.
They are high in vitamin C and quite nutritious and they can get huge if you feed them up with “up to 20kg each” being the number I see most.
For us here the record is a measly ~2.4kg, but I mean, that’s still bloody big I reckon!
Because of the large amount of starch they are also used to make deserts like custards and puddings and let me tell you, they are awesome!
Grown on a massive scale all around the world I have even seen a few in supermarkets locally over the last couple years which is really cool to see.
Botanically called Pachyrhizus erosus and normally called yambean or jicama, they are also commonly called nupe, agua, ahipa, ajipo, auyey, bangkwang, batata, bean, bengkowang, bunga, cay cu carota caballo, chestnut, chopsui dou-su, de fan-ko, di seng dau, erosus san, frijol name, gwa, hiris, huwi jicama, jicama leche, judía batata, kaeo, kaew, kalendre, kot, kuang, kuzu-imo, kuzuimo, Mexican man keo, mishrikand, pachyrrhize, patate-cochon, patate cochon, pek kuek, phuu, pois patate, poroto pois cachou, potato, potato-bean, saa got, sankalu, sankeh yaka, sankulu, sbai alu, sengkuang, sengkung, sha ge, shak-alu, singkamas, singkong, sinkamas, thua singkwang, turnip yambean, ubi bejuco, vine, water yam, yam-bean, yam bean, yambohne, yam turnip, yuco uisulbe and climbing yam.
The nitrogen fixing nature of the plant makes them a great green manure crop too.
There you go, tasty multipurpose tuberous roots, insecticidal pods and seeds, and green manure crop.
Pretty handy little fella and it even has attractive flowers so to my eye it’s a bit of a must have.
Grown by me and the Mrs organically, no chems, no nasties, no dramas!!!
