Zucchini and summer squash

Don't let familiarity breed contempt when it comes to these bountiful, fast-growing vegetables,

- SIMON RICKARD

Zucchini are so fast-growing, and so bountiful, that we almost resent them for it. These plants swamp us with their generosity. Tender baby zucchini can morph into inedible baseball bats practically overnight, leaving us wondering how to cope with the glut. Buckets of oversize zucchini left on neighbours’ doorsteps are not always received as gratefully as we might hope. Yet the zucchini and its relatives have a fascinating history, and are versatile in the kitchen.

Zucchini belong to a group of plants collectively termed “summer squash”. Summer squash are among the oldest of all domesticated plants. The earliest evidence for them dates from around 10,000 years ago, in the Mexican state of Oaxaca. Within a few thousand years, summer squash were being grown almost as far north as the Canadian border. By the time Europeans arrived in North America, squash were a long-established part of north American Indigenous culture.