The cucuzza has a rich etymology, making its classification tricky to pinpoint. The author of this post says it's technically a gourd (a member of the calabash family), but generally gets treated in the kitchen like a summer squash. She also writes that "cucuzza" is a general term for squash in certain regions of Italy. A couple commenters to her post say that "zucca" is actually the general term for squash and "cucuzza" a slang term used in the Southern regions (also as a joke/derogatory term to describe "a useless person"). The cucuzza also goes by different names, such as googootz, zuzza, New Guinea bean, and Tasmania bean.
Fortunately, its appearance renders it distinct: the cucuzza has a long, thin, curved body; with a light green skin and crispy white flesh (so I've read). It grows on a vine at quite an impressive rate: The vine can grow 2 feet per day, and the squash can grow 10 inches per day. According to the kitchn, they grow up to 27 inches long and 6 inches wide!
Photo from thekitchn.com
The cucuzza originated in Italy and can live in any temperate climate. It's also popular in East Asia, and, believe it or not, the largest cucuzza plantation in the world is located in Ruston, Louisiana
So what to do with all this cucuzza? You can treat it as you would zucchini. The Serious Eats post has a recipe for baked cucuzza fries. Here are some basic methods for preparing it (you can also order a recipe book with 50 cucuzza recipes if you're really taken). Recipe Zaar apparently has some good ones too, though their site is temporarily down for maintenance (will update later). Enjoy!
2 comments:
have you seen it sold anywhere?
I haven't, have you? I'm going to keep an eye out at the Union Square market. This one site I came across says "Availability has stimulated the popularity of squash as farmers' markets and produce departments often stock six to eight varieties, ranging in many colors and shapes," but maybe that's only near places that grow them?
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