Editing Pachyrhizus

{{Short description|Genus of legumes}}
{{For|the extinct fish|Pachyrhizodus}}
{{more citations needed|date=March 2013}}
{{Automatic taxobox
| image = Pachyrhizus erosus Blanco2.249.png
| display_parents = 3
| taxon = Pachyrhizus
| authority = [[Louis Claude Richard|Rich.]] ex [[A. P. de Candolle|DC.]] (1826)
| subdivision_ranks = Species
| subdivision_ref = <ref>[http://www.ildis.org/ ILDIS Version 6.05]</ref><ref name = powo/>
| subdivision = 
* ''[[Pachyrhizus ahipa]]'' {{small|(Wedd.) Parodi}}
* ''[[Pachyrhizus erosus]]'' {{small|(L.) Urb.}}
* ''[[Pachyrhizus ferrugineus]]'' {{small|(Piper) M.Sørensen}}
* ''[[Pachyrhizus panamensis]]'' {{small|R.T.Clausen}}
* ''[[Pachyrhizus tuberosus]]'' {{small|(Lam.) Spreng.}}
| synonyms = 
{{Genus list
| Cacara | Rumph. ex Thouars (1806)
| Pachyrrhizos | Spreng. (1827), orth. var.
| Robynsia | M.Martens & Galeotti (1843)
| Taeniocarpum | Desv. (1826)
}}
| synonyms_ref = <ref name = powo>{{cite POWO |id=23121-1 |title=''Pachyrhizus'' Rich. ex DC.|access-date=13 September 2023}}</ref>
}}

'''''Pachyrhizus''''' is a genus of [[flowering plant]]s in the legume family, [[Fabaceae]]. It includes five or species of herbs and subshrubs native to the tropical and subtropical Americas, ranging from northern [[Mexico]] to northwestern Argentina. Typical habitat is seasonally-dry tropical forest and thicket, often at forest margins, in scrub vegetation, and in open grassy areas.<ref name = powo/> Plants in the genus grow from large, often edible [[taproot]]s.

== Jícama ==

{{Main|Jícama}}
The '''jícama''' {{IPAc-en|ˈ|h|ɪ|k|əm|ə}} or '''yam bean''' (''P. erosus'') is a vine widely grown for its large (10–15&nbsp;cm diameter and up to 20&nbsp;kg weight), spherical or elongated taproot. After removal of the thick, fibrous brown skin, the white flesh of the root can be eaten cooked or raw. Crisp, moist, and slightly sweet, the flesh draws comparison with that of the [[apple]]. The plant produces seeds that are comparable to [[lima bean]]s, and that are sometimes eaten when young in places where the jicama is native.<ref>{{cite web
 | url=http://sfp.ucdavis.edu/pubs/brochures/Jicama.html
 | title=Jicama
 | publisher=UC Davis Extension
 | author=Hunter Johnson Jr.
 | date=September 1983
 | access-date=2011-11-09
 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111125162301/http://sfp.ucdavis.edu/pubs/brochures/Jicama.html
 | archive-date=2011-11-25
 | url-status=dead
 }}</ref>  The mature seeds contain high levels of [[rotenone]], a chemical used as an insecticide and pesticide.<ref>{{cite web
 | url=http://www.foodreference.com/html/art-jicama-history-facts.html
 | title=Jicama - Facts & History
}}</ref> The remainder of the jícama plant is very [[poison]]ous.<ref>{{cite web
 | url=http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/publications/nchfp/factsheets/jicama.html
 | publisher=National Center for Home Food Preservation
 | title=Using and Preserving Jicama
 | author=Elaine M. D'Sa
 | date=September 2004
 | access-date=2005-04-15
 | archive-date=2011-09-26
 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110926233052/http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/publications/nchfp/factsheets/jicama.html
 | url-status=dead
 }}</ref>

Jícama comes from the New World; the name jícama is used in Central / South America. Today, pachyrhizus erosus is grown throughout Asia. In China, the root is known as cold potato; in Malaysia, sengkuang; in Indonesia, bengkoang; in the Philippines, singkamas; in Thailand, mankew. It is eaten raw and used in stir fried dishes.<ref>Longmeimei YouTube channel: Archived at [https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/a2T8zT7eizo Ghostarchive]{{cbignore}} and the [https://web.archive.org/web/20210709195936/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a2T8zT7eizo Wayback Machine]{{cbignore}}: {{Citation|title=生长在黄土中却洁白如雪，既是清脆的水果也是甘甜的蔬菜| date=5 September 2020 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a2T8zT7eizo|language=en|access-date=2021-07-08}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

== ''Pachyrhizus tuberosus'' ==

'''''Goiteño''''', '''''nupe''''', '''''jacatupe'''''  or '''Amazonian yam bean''' (''[[Pachyrhizus tuberosus]]'') is an annual vine that is characterized by a wrapped and herbaceous stem and a ligneous base. It has white and lilac flowers, pods from 10 to 20&nbsp;cm in length and beans with a high protein content (32%). Each plant has two or more tubercles from 15 to 25&nbsp;cm in length that are succulent, sweet and rich in starch and protein (9%). They are consumed both raw and cooked. The leaves (20 to 24% protein) and pods are also edible. This plant prospers in acid soils in [[South America]]'s tropical rainforests. It is cultivated by the native peoples of the [[Amazon Rainforest]].

== Ahipa ==

The '''''ahipa''''', '''''ajipa''''',  or '''Andean yam bean''' (''[[Pachyrhizus ahipa]]'') is very similar to the jicama  and goitenyo in characteristics and uses. Unlike the jícama, it is not a vine and it grows up 2000 m above sea level in the highest [[Bolivia]]n mountains. The root is smaller and more elongated. It is little known outside of the [[Andes]], where it is mostly grown for personal or local consumption. In the 19th century, British scientists introduced ''ahipa'' to the [[West Indies]], where it is also enjoyed by the residents of those islands.<ref>*{{cite book
 | author=Vietmeyer, N.
 | chapter=Forgotten roots of the Incas
 | title=Chilies to Chocolate
 | editor=N. Foster
 | editor2=L. S. Cordell
 | publisher=University of Arizona Press, Tucson
 | year=1992
 | isbn=0-8165-1324-4
 | url-access=registration
 | url=https://archive.org/details/chiliestochocola00fost
 }}</ref>

All three above ''Pachyrhizus'' species are popular cultivated varieties, mainly jicama or ''P. erosus'', which is common in the US as imported jicama, while another species, '' P. palmatilobus'', is less agreeable in taste.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nutrition-and-you.com/jicama.html |title=Jicama nutrition facts |access-date=June 9, 2013}}</ref>

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

*{{cite web
 | url=https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=26823
 | title=Pachyrhizus Rich. ex DC. 
 | publisher=[[Integrated Taxonomic Information System]]
}}
*{{cite web
 | url=http://www.nutritiondata.com/facts-B00001-01c20hz.html
 | title=Yambean (jicama), raw
 | publisher=Nutrition Facts
}}

{{Taxonbar|from=Q1361402}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Phaseoleae]]
[[Category:Root vegetables]]
[[Category:Fabaceae genera]]
[[Category:Flora of the Neotropical realm]]