Easy to grow, very healthy and super yummy. But like cabbage, also this vegetable seems forgotten. We first time met topinambour a few years ago in Hungary. Here it is called “csicsóka”, but it has many names, like jerusalem artichoke, earth apple and sunroot.
This is how the tubers look:
Topinambour is very easy to grow and has little demands. It is growing also in sandy ground and can take dryness and cold (the tubers can take up to -30 c). It spreads fast: One root can make an additional 75 to 200 tubers in a year. It can spread even too fast, you have to take care to make root barriers in your garden, otherwise it can take over.
The plant is also looking very beautiful. Topinambour is in the same family like sunflower. And in autumn it has big, yellow flowers.
Beside topinambour is very healthy. It is good for treating obesity, preventing heart- and circulation diseases and cancer. Instead of starch it contains another polysaccharid, called inulin.
The human body does not have the enzyme to digest inulin in the stomach, but it is metabolized by a bacteria in the colon. For that inulin is not increasing the level of blood sugar, so it can play an important role in the diet of diabetics.
Topinambour is also keeping the digestive system healthy: It has six times higher fiber content than potatoes and it is probiotic, so it is regenerating the flora of the intestines.
When we met topinambour the first time, Zoé’s mother was making it as a patty. It is also very good for cream soups, chips, in bread and raw in salads. Another amazing way to consume it is to juice it together with orange, apple and carrot.
This time we prepared topinambour in the oven with a cream-garlic sauce and parmesan. It is an amazing simple and amazing yummy dish:
First you cut the topinambour in thin slices. You put them in a casserole and mix them with olive oil. They should be all covered but not swim in the oil. Then you add salt, grinded green paper mashed garlic, parmesan and cream. You mix all one more time and put it in the preheated oven on medium heat for around half an hour. Enjoy!
Hugs,
Zoé and Joshua
4 Responses
Looks and sounds amazing! But I cannot find it. Where do you buy it? Tamás
Hello Tamás,
in our area in Hungary you can buy topinambour in many vegetable shops, and even in the local supermarkets. Where do you live right now?
Have a beautiful day,
Zoé and Joshua
I know csicsoka mainly as fasirt. Maybe this is what Zoé’s mam did.
Hello Andi, you are right, this is how we tried it first time, too. Zoé’s mother is doing it with flour and egg, but we prefer to bread it. Hugs, Zoé and Joshua