Baby Green Zucchini Squash
Estimated Inventory, 10 lbs : 12.01
This item was last sold on : 01/10/25
Description/Taste
Baby Green zucchini is lean, petit and cylindrical with a smaller stem end than when fully mature. Its skin is glossy and deep green in color with faint cream freckles. Its crisp flesh is creamy white in color with an underdeveloped seed cavity due to its youth. Its flavor is peppery and complex with grassy undertones. Cooking will mellow the flavor and the color of baby Green zucchini. Younger zucchini is chosen over mature as their seeds are barely developed and the flesh offers higher moisture content than that of mature zucchini. In addition to the fruit of the plant, the leaves and the flower blossoms are also edible.
Seasons/Availability
Baby Green zucchini squash is available year-round with a peak season in the summer months.
Current Facts
Baby Green zucchini squash is of the species, Cucurbita pepo and a member of the Cucurbitaceae family. Green zucchini is the quintessential summer squash, easily the most grown of all summer squashes and perhaps one of the most versatile, prolific and flavorful cultivars. There are dozens of green zucchini varieties, with independent names and characteristics that set themselves apart from one another. Baby Green zucchini is simply classic zucchini picked at its immature stage of growth.
Nutritional Value
Baby Green zucchini is known for its high water content and is more than 95% water by weight. It also contains vitamin A and C as well as potassium, magnesium and folic acid.
Applications
Baby Green zucchini may be boiled, steamed, baked, sautéed, pickled, deep-fried, braised, grilled or roasted. Baby zucchini is so mild and tender that it can also be eaten raw. Add raw slices to salads or slice thinly lengthwise and use as a substitute for pasta. Serve whole on a crudité platter along with cream and cheese based dips. The flavor profile of baby Green zucchini pairs well with other summer vegetables such as tomatoes, eggplant, garlic and peppers, with fresh herbs such as basil, oregano and parsley, with olive oil, toasted pine nuts, grilled and roasted meats, and cheeses such as ricotta, cotija, feta and parmesan. To store, refrigerate in a plastic bag. Do not wash until just before preparation. For optimum flavor and texture, use within three to four days as this squash is delicately flavored and perishable.
Ethnic/Cultural Info
While Italy may be the birthplace of the famous zucchini in the United States it was Southern California that really put it on the map and spurred its rise to become the most popular summer squash in America. In the 1920’s one of the top restaurants in Los Angeles, Café Marcell regularly featured zucchini on their menu in the form of zucchini Florentine, mornay, and julienne; recipes which would go on to be featured in the Los Angeles Times as well as in local seed catalogs.
Geography/History
Zucchini is believed to be native to Italy with the first documented record of it being found in a 1901 Italian seed pamphlet from Milan, the squash was named zucca quarantina vera nana. The United States would see its first zucchini around the time of World War I, making its way there via Italian immigrants. While academic research does not mention zucchini until 1937 in the United States it is however well documented in archives of the Los Angeles Times as well as local seed catalogs as early as 1919. In 1918 it was listed as “Italian squash” in the Los Angeles Germain Seed and Plant Co. seed catalog. Then in 1919 it was renamed and first listed in the same catalog as zucchini. Zucchini quickly caught on as a popular vegetable in Southern California, so much so that merely a year after its debut in the Germain Seed catalog the 1920 catalog devoted a whole page to the great zucchini. This surge in popularity resulted in many new varieties of zucchini being developed in the following years. The baby Green zucchini while no doubt was used around the same time to some degree would not become a commercially successful variety until the 1980s when baby sized vegetables were growing in popularity among home cooks and restaurant chefs.
Featured Restaurants
Restaurants currently purchasing this product as an ingredient for their menu.
| UCSD Food & Nutrition Department La Jolla | San Diego CA | 858-761-1269 |
| Paradise Point Resort BQT Kitchen | San Diego CA | 858-490-6363 |
| InterContinental San Diego | San Diego CA | 619-501-9400 |
| Sheraton Harbor Island | San Diego CA | 619-692-2265 |
| Pamplemousse Grill | Solana Beach CA | 858-792-9090 |
| Lumi | San Diego CA | 619-955-5750 |
| Carbon | San Diego CA | 702-423-3807 |
| The Guild Hotel | San Diego CA | 619-764-5108 |
| Thai One On | Carlsbad CA | 760-500-8674 |
| US Grant Hotel Grill | San Diego CA | 619-232-3121 |
| Royal Polaris Sportfishing | San Diego CA | 619-226-8030 |
| Sheraton La Jolla | San Diego CA | 858-453-5500 |
| Parisien Gourmandises | La Jolla CA | 858-352-6552 |
| The Farm Golf Club | Rancho Santa Fe CA | 858-756-5585 |
| Prey Brewing Company | Vista CA | 760-822-4226 |
| InterContinental Vistal Kitchen | San Diego CA | 619-501-9400 |
| The Handmade Chef Meal Prep Co. | San Diego CA | 619-368-3705 |
| University Club | San Diego CA | 619-234-5200 |
| Pacific Yacht Agents | Los Angeles CA | 808-214-0970 |
| PFC Fitness Camp | Carlsbad CA | 888-488-8936 |
| UCSD Health East campus | San Diego CA | 619-578-3373 |
| Woods Hole Oceanographic Inst. | San Diego CA | 508-289-2667 |
| Rustic Root Solana | Solana Beach CA | 619-955-5750 |
| Chateau La Jolla | San Diego CA | 858-459-4451 |
| Meraki | San Diego CA | 833-921-7180 |
| Reata Glen | Ladera Ranch CA | 949-545-2250 |
| Salt & Whiskey | San Diego CA | 619-544-1886 |
| Dolce Pane & Vino | Del Mar CA | 858-832-1518 |
| Sycuan Casino | El Cajon CA | 619-445-6002 |
| Viejas Casino Banquets | Alpine Ca | 619-295-3172 |
Recipe Ideas
Recipes that include Baby Green Zucchini Squash. One
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