Oca

[timethatthetaleweretold]

Thanks snohare.
It was, perhaps, a bit of a silly question given that ocas come from the sunny Andes. So thanks for taking the time to respond.

No more shade-house for them.
Just Cloches at night until probably late April.

[snohare]

No such thing as a silly question, more often a foolish certainty.
The conclusion might have been erroneous, but I'd say the mere fact that you noticed such a small detail is to be commended. That's the basis of most progress in horticulture for thousands of years !

[chris]

What do they taste of? How do you cook them?

[snohare]

Ah, Mr Bonk !
Lemony, basically.
Boil, steam, smash...no maybe not smash, they are kind of....well, too solid is the best way to describe the outcome the one time I thought of mashing them. But that might well be because I didn't cook them for long enough.
Generally I used to add them to casseroles, they were nice like that, but you can also eat them raw - they are very nice that way, in the same way that a carrot is, and with a similar firmness.

[rana]

OCA UPDATE

The oca tubers/corms I planted in pots in early March and placed in the greenhouse have now thrown up their first leaves. At first I thought there was a weed invasion as they look just like clover.

[BigShot]

You might also like to try Jerusalem artichokes as an alternative to potatoes. They are absolutely superb as chips.

Zeezeezed - if you wanted to try this suggestion, see my Jerusalem Article thread over in the seed swap.