If you’re not a fan of leafy vegetables but would still like to get your share of daily greens, try the flavorsome zucchini. It looks like a cucumber, feels like a cucumber and hey it even smells like one! But slice it apart and you’ll realize it’s texture is a lot like a luffa or patola.
The zucchini can be quite an elusive ingredient but this highly nutritious vegetable it’s often found in ratatouilles, pasta, salads, pizzas and pancakes. Although available in Malaysia, Zucchini is more commonly used in countries such as Mexico, Italy, Rome, France, Turkey, Greece, Bulgaria and Spain as well as in Thai and Vietnamese recipes.
It tastes rather plain on its own so there are a variety of methods to cook zucchini from steaming to grilling to barbecuing. Amazingly, it’s also baked into bread just like you would with bananas or deep fried with tempura flour for that crisp texture. This low calorie vegetable is often used in weight reduction, cholestrol control programmes, reduces constipation and is said to prevent colon cancers.
Like the banana, zucchinis are high in potassium, rich in vitamin A and have antioxidants which help slow down the aging process and other diseases. In addition, they are also good in B-complex group of vitamins like thiamin, pyridoxine, riboflavin and minerals like iron, manganese, phosphorus and zinc. Talk about tons wholesome goodness in every bite!
When purchasing zucchinis to cook, select those that are under 8 inches in length so that the seeds are still soft, edible and less fibrous. Here’s a simple stir fry recipe which you can try out yourself:
Zucchini and Pepper Sauté
What You Need (Serves 2)
1 Zucchini
2 Capsicums or Pepper (choose Yellow or Red as these are the sweeter variety)
1/2 cup of corn kernels
1 clove of garlic chopped finely
2 small onions chopped finely
1 teaspoon of ground Cumin powder
1/4 teaspoon of black pepper
Salt to taste
Chop the zucchini and capsicums into inch sized cubes.
Chop up the garlic and small onions finely.
Heat up the olive oil and fry the garlic and onion mince until fragrant.
Throw in the zucchini, capsicums and cumin powder. Stir occasionally for four to six minutes until tender.
Add corn kernels towards the end and season with salt and pepper.
Bon appétit!
