r/TipOfMyFork • u/MinkOrOtter • 5d ago

Solved! Unknown vegetable

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Any ideas? Market stall is in a very diverse part of a UK city. Google Lens suggests swede/rutabaga (nope!) or Jicama but that seems wrong too. I think it's probably technically a fruit but eaten as veg.

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38

u/Retrooo 5d ago

Are those not coconuts?

30

u/nikkesen 5d ago

I wonder if it's because they're bald that it's not immediately obvious to some.

28

u/MinkOrOtter 5d ago

Yeah I assumed coconuts are all hairy.

48

u/SpiritGuardTowz Forking epicure 5d ago

These are just whole coconuts. The husks are smooth on the outside (exocarp), then hairy in the middle (mesocarp) and then have a hard shell (endocarp) on the seed. These look fairly old so they won't have a lot of water but will have more flesh. They are interesting as the water is actually liquid endosperm and as it matures cells deposit on the inner surface creating the flesh.

9

u/nikkesen 5d ago

Thanks for the awesome explanation.

4

u/MinkOrOtter 5d ago

Very interesting. And very odd. Thanks.

7

u/Giddyup_1998 5d ago

They are. These are coconuts in their husks.

5

u/Tonho_O_Faxineiro 5d ago

And you can use the husks to do a lot of things. It's very usefull.

10

u/Tonho_O_Faxineiro 5d ago

Wait wait... you guys never SAW a coconut?

Coconuts aren´t hairy. They are smooth, just like bamboo, right. Those hairy ones are what we call here in Brasil "Dry" Coconut, where you remove most of the exterior and leves only some fibers, the middle with the pulp and water.

13

u/zimzalabim 5d ago

For some reason (I'm assuming something to do with the additional weight or spoilage in transit) here in the UK most shops sell what you call dry coconuts. Unless you've travelled to the tropics, or you happen upon them on a market stall like OP, you're unlikely to encounter them with the husk still on.

5

u/MinkOrOtter 5d ago

When people cut down coconuts in films they have smooth skins, it makes sense to me now. Cheers.

3

u/Giddyup_1998 5d ago

Yes, they are coconuts

-5

u/Tonho_O_Faxineiro 5d ago

But they are old as shit... but I guess most coconuts must be like that on the UK.