| Zucchini | |
|---|---|
  Striped and uniform-colored zucchini | |
| Genus | Cucurbita |
| Species | Cucurbita pepo |
| Origin | 19th-century northern Italy |
Zucchini (/zuːˈkiːni/ ⓘzoo-KEE-nee;pl. zucchini orzucchinis;[1] in Italy, Australia, and North America),[2]courgette (/kʊərˈʒɛt/koor-ZHET; in France and Britain),[3] orCucurbita pepo var.cylindrica[4] is asummer squash, aviningherbaceous plant whose fruit are harvested when their immatureseeds andepicarp (rind) are still soft and edible. It is closely related, but not identical, to themarrow; its fruit may be calledmarrow when mature.[5][6][7]
Ordinary zucchini fruit are any shade of green, though the golden zucchini is a deep yellow or orange.[8] At maturity, they can grow to nearly 1 metre (3 feet) in length, but they are normally harvested at about 15–25 cm (6–10 in).[9] Inbotany, the zucchini's fruit is apepo, aberry (the swollenovary of thezucchini flower) with a hardened epicarp. In cookery, it is treated as a vegetable, usually cooked and eaten as an accompaniment or savory dish, though occasionally used in sweeter cooking.
Zucchini descend from squashes firstdomesticated inMesoamerica over 7,000 years ago,[10] but the zucchini itself was bred inMilan in the late 19th century.[11] Zucchini occasionally contain toxiccucurbitacins, making them extremely bitter, and causing severe gastro-enteric upsets. Causes include stressed growing conditions, and cross pollination with ornamental squashes.[12]
The termzucchini is the plural ofzucchino, adiminutive ofzucca, meaning "gourd", "marrow", "pumpkin" or "squash" inItalian.[13] The word exists in both feminine (zucchina, pl.zucchine) and masculine (zucchino, pl.zucchini) forms, the first being standard Italian[14] and the second aTuscan variant. The original Italian text ofPellegrino Artusi's 1891 cookbookLa scienza in cucina e l'arte di mangiar bene (Science in the Kitchen and the Art of Eating Well) uses the feminine form,[15] butThe Oxford Companion to Italian Food observes that "North Americans prefer the versionzucchini".[16]
The first mention of the vegetable in English publications was in the early twentieth century, in English cookbooks and travel books in one of which it was referred to as "an odd kind of little squash, very tender and palatable".[13]
In France, Britain and some other places zucchini are called courgettes.[17] According to theDictionnaire de l'Académie française the word is a twentieth-century coinage, deriving from the fourteenth-centurycourge, a plant of the cucurbitaceae family such as a pumpkin or marrow.[18]
Another common name for zucchini,baby marrow, is used interchangeably in South Africa withcourgette.[19]
Zucchini has its ancestry in the Americas, specificallyMesoamerica. The varieties of green, cylindrical squash harvested immature and typically called "zucchini" were cultivated in northern Italy, as much as three centuries after the introduction of cucurbits from the Americas. It appears that this occurred in the second half of the 19th century, although the first description of the variety under the namezucchini occurs in a work published inMilan in 1901.[11]
The first records of zucchini in the United States date to the early 1920s. It was almost certainly taken to America by Italian immigrants and probably was first cultivated in the United States in California. A 1928 report on vegetables grown in New York State treats 'Zucchini' as one among 60 cultivated varieties ofC. pepo.[20]
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When used for food, zucchini are usually picked when under 20 cm (8 in) in length, when the seeds are still soft and immature.[21] Mature zucchini can be 1 m (40 in) long or more. These larger ones often have mature seeds and hard skins, requiring peeling and seeding. Zucchini with the flowers attached are a sign of a truly fresh and immature fruit, and are especially sought after for their sweeter flavor.[22][23]
Zucchini are usually served cooked.[24][25] They can be prepared using a variety of cooking techniques, including steamed, boiled, grilled,stuffed and baked, barbecued, fried, or incorporated in other recipes such assoufflés. Raw grated zucchini can also be combined with flour and spices in a zucchini bread.[26][27]
Zucchini have a delicate flavor and can be found simply cooked with butter orolive oil and herbs, or in more complex dishes.[28] The skin is usually left in place. When frying zucchini, it is recommended to pat down cut sections to make them drier, similarly to what may be done witheggplant, in order to keep the slices' shape while cooking.[29] Zucchini can also be eaten raw, sliced or shredded, in a cold salad, as well as lightly cooked in hot salads, as inThai orVietnamese recipes. Mature (larger-sized) zucchini are well-suited for cooking in breads.[30]
Zucchini can be cut with aspiralizer into noodle-like spirals and used as a low-carbohydrate substitute for pasta or noodles, often referred to as 'zoodles'.[31]
Zucchini are much used in the cuisine of France, where they are known as courgettes. Among the recipes in two standard culinary works of reference –Louis Saulnier'sLe répertoire de la cuisine and Walter Bickel'sHering's Dictionary of Classical and Modern Cookery – are:
Courgettes (zucchini) are a key ingredient inratatouille, a stew of summer vegetables prepared in olive oil and cooked for an extended time over low heat. The dish, originating near present-dayNice, is served as a side dish or on its own at lunch with bread.[34]
Italian dishes using zucchini include:
In Britain, zucchini (called "courgettes" there) were known in the 1930s but were rare until after theSecond World War. In the 1989 revised edition of herItalian Food,Elizabeth David wrote, "I think it worth recording here that, when I was writing this book in 1954 ... zucchini or courgettes were rare and expensive luxuries, imported from France". By 1957 a leading nursery inSurrey initiated the cultivation of the vegetable for the British market and, in David's words, "before long they were to be found in many enterprising greengrocers’ shops [with] the general acceptance today of this attractive and versatile vegetable".[38] In 2005, a poll of 2,000 people revealed the courgette to be Britain's 10th most popular culinary vegetable.[39]
In Egypt, zucchini may be cooked with tomato sauce, garlic, and onions.[40] InSephardic Jewish cuisine,medias (fromJudeo-Spanish, meaning "halves") is a dish of halved zucchini stuffed with meat and a mixture of ingredients, and cooked in a sour lemon sauce.[41]
Stuffed zucchini are found in many cuisines. As an example, in Lebanon, zucchini can be used to create Kousa Mahshi, which translates to "stuffed zucchini" in Arabic. The dish is made by coring the squash and then stuffing it with rice and spiced ground beef. Vegetables and other protein substitutes such as lamb may also be used. The contents of the zucchini are cooked by first boiling it and then reducing the heat of the zucchini's pot or container before letting it simmer for an hour.[42] There's also Lebanese Zucchini Stew, or Mnazelah, a stew consisting of zucchini, potatoes, tomatoes, meat, and varied spices.[43] Typical stuffings in the Middle Eastern family ofdolma include rice, onions, tomato, and sometimes meat.
In Australia, a popular dish is afrittata-like dish calledzucchini slice.[44]
In Mexico, the flower (known asflor de calabaza) is often cooked in soups or used as a filling forquesadillas. The fruit is used in stews, soups (i.e.caldo de res,de pollo, orde pescado,mole de olla, etc.) and other preparations. The flower, as well as the fruit, is eaten often throughout Latin America.[45]
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| Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Energy | 21 kcal (88 kJ) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
3.1 g | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Dietary fiber | 1.1 g | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
0.4 g | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2.71 g | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Other constituents | Quantity | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Water | 93 g | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| †Percentages estimated usingUS recommendations for adults,[46] except for potassium, which is estimated based on expert recommendation from theNational Academies.[47] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
A raw zucchini is 93% water, 3%carbohydrates, 3%protein, and contains negligiblefat (table). In a reference amount of 100 g (3.5 oz), raw zucchini supplies 21calories offood energy, and is a rich source (20% or more of theDaily Value, DV) ofvitamin A (54% DV) andvitamin C (38% DV) (table). It is a moderate source ofpotassium (15% DV), with no othermicronutrients in significant content (table).
Members of the plant familyCucurbitaceae, which includes zucchini / marrows, pumpkins and cucumbers, can contain toxins calledcucurbitacins. These aresteroids which defend the plants from predators, and have a bitter taste to humans. Cultivated cucurbitaceae are bred for low levels of the toxin and are safe to eat. However, ornamental pumpkins can have high levels of cucurbitacins, and such ornamental plants can cross-fertilize edible cucurbitaceae—any such cross-fertilized seeds used by the gardener for growing food in the following season can therefore potentially produce bitter and toxic fruit. Dry weather or irregular watering can also favor the production of the toxin, which is not destroyed by cooking. Humans with an impaired sense of taste (particularly the elderly) should therefore ask another person to taste the zucchini for them.[48][49] This toxin has caused at least one death of an elderly person, in 2015.[50] Investigators warned that gardeners should not save their own seeds, as reversion to forms containing morepoisonous cucurbitacin might occur.[49][50]
Zucchini can also be responsible forallergy caused by the presence of aprotein:profilin.[51]
Although easy to grow, zucchini, like all squash, require plentifulbees forpollination. In areas ofpollinator decline or highpesticide use, such asmosquito-spray districts, gardeners often experience fruit abortion, where the fruit begins to grow, then dries or rots. This is due to an insufficient number of pollen grains delivered to the female flower. It can be corrected byhand pollination or by increasing the bee population. In areas whereC. pepo is native, the primary pollinators aresquash bees.[52]
Closely related to zucchini are Lebanese summer squash orkusa (not to be confused withcushaw), but they often are lighter green or even white. Some seed catalogs do not distinguish them. Various varieties of round zucchini are grown in different countries under different names, such as "Tondo di Piacenza" in Italy, "Qarabaghli" in Malta[53] and "Ronde de Nice" in France.[54] In the late 1990s, American producers in California cultivated and began marketing round yellow and green zucchini known as "8-ball" squash (the yellow ones are sometimes known as "1-ball" or "gold ball").[55]
Vegetable orchestras, such as theLondon Vegetable Orchestra use zucchini trumpets,butternut squash trombones,pumpkin drums andaubergine castanets.[57] Other vegetables played include carrots,bell peppers,potatoes andparsnips.[58]
Courgettes are commonly described as marrows harvested young. However, there are some slight horticultural differences between courgettes and marrows. Courgettes tend to be bushy and thin-skinned, whereas marrows tend to trailing and have a thicker skin.
The general difference between Marrows and Courgettes / Zuchini is: Marrow plants tend to trail out and the fruit skin is quite thick, whereas Courgettes grow as a bush and the skins are quite thin.
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