Q: I received these mysterious vegetables (fruits? nuts?) in a co-op basket. They are about the size of a garlic bulb, a dark reddish-black color on the outside, with a white starchy substance on the inside. The white pulp has a mild flavor that is at first reminiscent of coconut or almond but fades out quickly, and the texture is like an apple, an unripe pear, or a raw potato. They came in a pack of vegetables that was "Asian themed."
Sent by Kirsten
Editor: Readers, can you identify this vegetable?
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(Image: Kirsten via our The Kitchn's submission form)
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It is Chinese water chestnut! Peel it and use it stir-fry or dumplings.
Kinda looks like a lychee nut: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lychee
water chestnuts! i used it like @amila said...stir-fry, dumplings, and also other soups, and I used to eat it raw :)
Yes, fresh water chestnut. Peel, slice and use the way you would the canned variety but these are sooo much better! Really, they're like a completely different vegetable.
Mhmmm...those are water chestnuts. Nice one AMILA...
embarrassed to say I've only ever seen canned water chestnuts!
Yum! Fresh water chestnuts. How delicious :)
Water chestnuts. Eat it raw or cook with it. Wash properly because it has parasites on skin. Not all. Some. Better to be safe than sorry.
I've never seen a fresh one, either! They're lovely - very jealous!
Bountiful Baskets? :)
I got some too, now I just need to figure out how to use them.
Chinese water chestnut. Peel the skin. Great with soup, dumplings, chinese style steam ground meat dishes. It gives a little crunchy texture in your food. I won't recommend to eat it raw.
Thanks everybody! I have also only ever seen these canned, and what a treat to have received them fresh because the flavor is much, much better. I had no idea! And @ kaybates2, yes indeed :)
Wow...I admit that I've never seen an unprocessed water chestnut before. I do love them in my green bean casserole.
Definitely water chestnuts. In India, they're chucked into a slow burning wood-fire and roasted until the outside blackens. Then you pop 'em open by squeezing and eat the inside: it's soft and smoky and absolutely delicious.
Check this picture out, sums up one of my favorite childhood snacks:
https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/MbzChdgpSYupfK6FaR55MQ
I LOVE water chestnuts! I have been searching for them in NYC and can't find them. I love to just have them on hand and eat them raw. So milky and delicious!
Just wanted to point out, while we're at it, that what Carrborogirl is talking about is actually a slightly different vegetable.
Chinese: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eleocharis_dulcis -- the corm is eaten.
Indian (though really also very likely of Chinese origin): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_caltrop -- you eat the fruit, ie, the opposite end of the plant! (The dehydrated flesh is often ground into flour as well, making it a grain/lentil substitute as well as a fruit/vegetable.)
Water chestnuts!
Please, please, please make 'tub tim krob' out of it (Thai red rubies dessert). It's basically tiny cubes of water chestnut coated in glutinous rice flour and red colouring which are then boiled and eaten with sweet coconut milk/cream. Throw in some slivers of jackfruit and you'll feel like a king (or queen)!
@lilycerise, I bought some at SkyFoods in Flushing. You may be able to find them at a well stocked Asian grocery in Chinatown.