Cuke-Asaurus Cukes New To The Market

Cuke-Asaurus Cukes New To The Market FARM HOME Food 20-1-22 "The æCuke-Asaurus' originated in the rain forests of South America but disappeared years ago. We're bringing it back," says Ismael Gomberoff of Artistic Farms, Lynden, Wash., a Chilean researcher who's spent years "rediscovering" foods of ancient origin that most people have never heard of. The "Cuke-Asaurus" is a good example. It's a small orange fruit with sharp horns all over the skin. Inside there's jelly-like pulp with tiny white seeds. It has a fruity taste and can be eaten fresh from the shell. When pickled at its immature, green stage, the "Cuke-Asaurus" is more like a vegetable. It can be sliced up and eaten in salads or pickled, Gomberoff says. It makes very sweet pickles that don't have the after-taste of some conventional cucumber pickles, he adds. Whether eaten as a fruit or vegetable, the unusual variety is chock full of vitamins and minerals. For example, it contains as much potassium as a whole banana. It grows similar to regular cucumbers. Gomberoff is looking for contract growers. Planted in 36-in rows at a rate of 6,000 seeds per acre in late May or early June, yield will be 6,000 to 8,000 cases of fruit. Harvested green at about 9 weeks, the 2-in. long cuke is packed four to a box and marketed as Cuke-Asaurus Dino Eggs. When harvested orange at about 13 weeks, the 6 3/4-in. long cukes are sold as Cuke-Asaurus Horned Fruit. Gomberoff hopes to supply specialty markets on the East and West Coasts all year around. Retail prices are 50 to 75 cents per pound. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Artistic Farms, 6965 Guide Meridian, P.O. Box 262, Lynden, Wash. 98264 (ph 360 398-9351).

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