Yacón

Yacón is a new vegetable, or better formulated: a new root crop from the Andes. It’s only new to us; Yacón has been cultivated in the Andes for over 1000 years. In contrast to sweet potatoes (and similar to Oca), Yacón can also be enjoyed fresh. Oca are known for their sour taste, Yacón have a sweet to very sweet flavour. One is almost tempted to talk about root melons or root bananas. One more difference: Yacón has very large tubers, much larger than Oca and similar to the sweet potatoes. Per plant, 4-5 kg ​​can be harvested, which is easily enough to use as a main vegetable 8-10 times for 4 people. And growing the plant is easy: in May, plant out the young plants or tubers, and then let them grow. At a distance of 40-50 cm, Yacón quickly covers the ground; it do not allow weeds to go through and grows as big as a human. In a good and sunny year you can also expect sunflower-like flowers in September or October. The harvest is then followed by the first frosts, at the end of October or in November. When eating, both as a vegetable and fresh, the first impression is of crunchiness; Yacón are fresh and crisp. Yacón is characterised by an extraordinary succulence, the cells release their juice very quickly and thus a mild, but warm and wide sweetness unfolds. The latter must also be planned into the menus; as a vegetable, the sweetness of the Yacón should be balanced with lemon or lime juice, in spicy dishes or curry, the sweetness itself can form a counterweight.