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stranger
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stranger
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I don't want to "squash" a good example of a phrase, but I wonder how many of us English speakers here on the west side of the big pond know that a "marrow" is what we call a zucchini?
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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Dear Juan1Dia: A lot of us have heard of zucchini, but I doubt that many had ever
heard of "marrow" as a member of the squash family. I never heard of it ;until it
was mentioned by Wordsmith. And my dictionary under "vegetable marrow" indicates
it is British for summer squash. To me, summer squash are yellow, zucchini are
bright green. Big trick with zucchini is to get them the size of a banana.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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In reply to:
Big trick with zucchini is to get them the size of a banana.
in my neck of the woods, we have zucchini festivals, and a banana-sized zuke would be a small one... wink, wink...
formerly known as etaoin...
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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When we first grew zucchini, we didn't know when to harvest them. The ones
as big as my leg (right or left only under consideration) were horrible. It was
a while before they appeared in stores, dildo sized.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Welcome to you, Juan1Dia. Did you know that the Brit-speakers usually call zucchinis courgettes? (Thanks, Jo!)
I have to say that our beloved Wordsmith's double entendre was completely lost on me. If I hear just the word marrow (that is), without the word bone in front of it), I think "plant". (An Appalachian corruption of mallow, possibly.)
I gather it has, er, another interpretation.
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old hand
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old hand
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All you need is one brief encounter with a British cookbook (or the other way around, depending on where you live) to realize that not only is marrow = zucchini = courgette, but aubergine = eggplant, and the measuring systems are quite different. However, it is worth the effort for me, as my two favourite cookbooks (a giant Italian one and a Turkish one) are both British...I am willing to look up what 1 pound of flour is in cups (I have no kitchen scale!) to get to the delectable end result... 
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marrow = zucchini = courgette
Not quite, in my lexicon anyway Bean: sure, zucchini = courgette, but a marrow is always a much larger [and infinitely less flavo(u)rsome] growth. Our courgette plants are now in full swing, and if not picked daily the delicate little fruits soon attempt to become marrows in size but they are even then quite different. Strangely, one of our three plants seems to be a weird hybrid, with multiple heads instread of sprawling with an ever-elongating single crown of growth: if anything, it seems to be fruiting even more madly as a result! We aim to pick them significantly smaller than bananas here Bill - our ideal is about 4 or 5 inches long and maybe an inch and a half thick, at which point they are sweet and tender and fit to gently sautee in butter and garlic... mmmmmm!
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old hand
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old hand
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So funny that marrows crop up! I was handling a sizable exemplar at a Turkish grocery store just yesterday! It was a fair bit more yellow than a zucchini, btw.
> but a marrow is always a much larger and infinitely less flavoursome growth
That's how I've always seen them. I only learned of marrows while in England where they have loads of local competitions every year to produce the biggest marrow.
It's funny that by picking them earlier on they taste better - with fruit on the other hand, it is usually quite the opposite, isn't it?
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Carpal Tunnel
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The sweetest of the sweet squashes are the very young goosenecks--just turning yellow. Cooked with onion and bacon or hamhock till perfect mush--ah!--splendid.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Forces by WW, i will say the best zucchinis recipe i know are medium sliced(diagonal is best)zucchini, sauted over high heat in butter with finely diced shallots and red peppers (sweet) --about 1/4 cup of each, till the shallots wilt and go clear. then add 2 tbs of lemon juice, and the same of water, quickly cover the pan, and turn off heat, let them steam for a few minutes.. finish the dish with a freshly grated pepper (black) and nutmeg.. simple perfections. works well for yellow squash/marrows too. looks good too, the zucchini alternately bright green, the pinkish shallots, and red pepper and the redish (nutmeg) and black (pepper) speckles
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