Zucchini Health Benefits & History and Buying & Storing Tips

Zucchini (in the squash family) is a vegetable (biologically an immature fruit) that is easy to cultivate in quantity in temperate climates. While it was normally a spring and summer vegetable, hothouses make it available year round. Those zucchini that ripen in the garden are more flavorful, however.

Zucchini is usually in the shape of a cucumber but can be round or bottle-shaped and is green or yellow. An interesting fact is that the female flower is a blossom at the end of the zucchini, and the male flower grows directly on the stalk. Both flowers are edible and are a delicacy in many cultures. Both the zucchini and the flowers can be eaten raw or used in a number of different dishes.

Zucchini was brought to the United States in the 1920s by Italian immigrants and was probably first cultivated in California. It is typically grown in the cooler regions of the Mediterranean countries as well as the Netherlands, USA, and United Kingdom.

With only 15 calories per a half cup serving, zucchini is a good low calorie choice. It contains folate, magnesium, iron, zinc, potassium, manganese, vitamins A and B6; so it is also extremely healthy.

Buy only the amount of zucchini you need when you are ready to use it because it is perishable and should only be stored for up to three days. Choose firm slender ones with a shiny skin free of soft spots and wrinkles. Handle them tenderly because they are fragile. In fact, harvesters often wear gloves so as not to puncture the skin. The young zucchini under eight inches in length are more tender and have seeds that you do not have to remove. Much larger older ones can often be tough and sometimes can be unappetizing.

Store in well perforated plastic bags in the crisper drawer of the refrigerator, and do not wash the zucchini until ready to use. You can buy perforated bags especially for vegetables or use a sharp object to make approximately 20 holes per medium-sized unperforated bag.