Jicama Salad with Apples and Honey Lime Dressing

Jicama Salad with Apples, Radishes, Jalapeño and Honey Lime dressing

This is the kind of salad I love to serve alongside hearty, spicy dishes like Crispy Chile Rellenos smothered in Green Chili. It's crisp, light, and refreshing and provides a delicious balance to fried or spicy dishes. 

Making this jicama salad couldn't be easier.

#1. Make the dressing.

Add lime juice, a minced shallot, honey, and 2 teaspoons of mayonnaise in a bowl and stir to mix. Then whisk in a couple tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and let the dressing sit while you chop the vegetables.

You might wonder why there's such a small amount of mayonnaise in this dressing. The tiny amount of mayonnaise in this dressing to help the dressing emulsify, binding the lime juice and oil into a smooth cohesive dressing. 

#2. Chop the vegetables.

Slice up some jicama, green apples, and radishes. Peel the jicama and the apples and cut them both into strips that resemble very thick matchsticks - about ¼ to ½-inch thick. Slice the radishes very thin using a sharp knife or a mandoline.

Then, toss in some minced jalapeño and chopped fresh cilantro. 

#3. Toss the veggies with the dressing and let sit.

Pour the dressing over the vegetables, toss everything around to coat, and let the salad sit for about 30 minutes. This short resting time will help the jicama and apple absorb the flavors of the dressing.

It will also soften the sharp spiciness of the jalapeño and allot the vegetables to soften ever so slightly. They will stay crisp for hour. But, allowing them to sit in the dressing for a bit gives them a crisp-tender texture. 

What is jicama? 

Jicama is a root vegetable that's native to Mexico, where they've been eaten for hundreds of years. The Spanish introduced the to the Philippines sometime during the 16th century. From there they spread through West Africa and Asia, making their way into North America in the 17th century.

Even though the jicama has been around for a while, many people in the US have never tried it, let alone cooked with it. To be fair... it doesn't look like much. It looks a little like a turnip with the skin of a potato. Inside, it's just white. Just white flesh covered in brown skin. 

But, looks can be deceptive. Jicama are nutrient dense and full of fiber. They are sweet and crunchy, with a consistency that's something like a cross between an apple and a potato.

Jicama's mild flavor and satisfying crunch make it well suited to a myriad of culinary uses. One of the best things about it is that it doesn't become brown or soggy after slicing, so you can prepare it in advance.

My favorite way to eat it is raw, sliced into batons for crudité platters, in salads, and even in sushi rolls. But you can also throw it on a hot grill or sautéed in a hot pan with a touch of oil. 

Want to Know Something Really Unexpected About Jicama

Jicama are in the bean family. Jicama plants are vines, growing much like pole beans.

The root - the part we eat - takes three to six months to grow and can't grown in most of North America. Most of the jicama sold in the US was grown in Mexico, Central or South America.