​I am native to Mexico where I am commonly set out as a tasty and crunchy snack. 

I defend myself with poisonous leaves and beans. My plant is a legume (like peas) but the part you eat is a "tuber" which basically means a swollen root. Do not eat any poisonous part of the plant.

​Swollen root? Yep, that means the part you eat grows under the ground. The root swells up instead of branching out and holds all the nutrients. This is how a potato grows, too!

I am usually dug up once I'm the size to fit in the palm of your hand and am 1 to 5 pounds, but I can grow really large. The heaviest of me weighed 21 kg (46 lb 4.8 oz) and was grown by Leo Sutisna in Indonesia.

​After I'm dug up, I can be stored in a dark place for up to 2 months. Because I defend myself from pests, it's important to cut off my skin and wash me. 

I'm most commonly cut in spears (like fries) and seasoned with chili powder and fresh lime juice. I can also be baked or sautéed and added to stir fry. 

​Español: jícama
Pronounced: hi-kuh-muh 
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Did we stump you? See if you can find jicama at the grocery store. It tastes a lot like an apple with the texture of a raw potato. Remember to peel off the skin before eating it. 

Watch the video to learn more about the health benefits of Jicama!

​My name can be traced back to the 1493, when I was discovered in the islands south of Florida by famous Spanish explorers. 

I grow best in tropical and warm climates, like Costa Rica, Brazil, and Hawaii. 

​You might be surprised to know I grow out of the ground from a plant that has long spikey leaves. In the center, you'll find my fruit. When I'm starting to grow, multiple berries fuse together to make the fruit you'll eat. 

I don't grow from a seed. Instead, the top of the fruit is cut off and put back into the ground.

​It can take about 3 years until my plant fully grows my fruit and I'm ready to pick. I don't ripen after I'm picked, so you should eat me right away! If you are saving me for a special occasion, set me in the fridge until you're ready to eat.​Then cut off the scales on my skin and the hard core of my fruit. 

Español: piña

Good job! Pineapple is delicious raw, in smoothies, and even cooked! Have you had a fresh pineapple?

Watch the video to learn more:

​Feed your food curiosity! Snackster Sam provides fun and educational content about food that grows. Join the adventure. Download the Snackster Sam app from Google Play or the App Store!

​I'm often added to soups to add more flavor. 

I started growing in the Middle East and have been farmed for at least 3,000 years. I was used as a decoration on King Tut's tomb! The seed, which is actually the fruit of my plant, was used in ancient medicine.

​See my gnarly roots? You guessed it, I grow under the ground. However, I have many varieties, and on other plants, you'll eat the part that grows above the ground, which is a long green stalk. I'm a cool weather plant, which means I grow best when temperatures are 55 to 70°F.

​I grow slowly, and usually after the first frost, I'm ready to be picked. Farmers cut the stalks off the root. Once I'm picked, I should be kept cool. 
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My root is delicious cooked and added to soups or mashed like potatoes. My seeds can also be used as a spice. And the stalk can be eaten raw or cooked. 

Español: raíz de apio

​​Have you tried celery root before? It can also be called celeriac. 

I'm slightly sweet with an unmistakable look. I can be grown from a seed, and I grow so fast! I can even grow fruit in one year after being planted. But, I only live for about five years.

I started growing in Mexico. I love tropical weather (hot and humid).

​People think I grow on a tree, but it's actually a large plant. My plant produces boy or girl flowers, which dangle from the center of the plant. Bees and butterflies collect pollen from flowers and share it, which is called cross pollination. After this, my fruit can grow. My leaves are very large, about 20 inches wide! 

​Once my skin is yellowish-orange, I'm fully ripe! But, you can eat the fruit when I'm not ripe - you just cook me like squash. You can even eat my leaves in tea, juice, or cooked. 

My ripe fruit can be eaten raw, roasted, mixed in smoothies, or dried. You've probably tried me in trail mix!

Español: papaya

Have you tried papaya before? Papaya is also called papaw or pawpaw.

​I technically am a fruit. I grow on a vine, with a yellow flower. I mostly come green, but also can be yellow and white! I started growing in India and now grow all across the world! I've been an important fruit for thousands of years.

​I grow on the ground. Farmers have to plant me in the ground by hand. Once I start to grow they wrap my vine around the nets. The bees are very important for my fruit to grow. (In fact, bees are important for most food!)

​I am picked before I'm fully grown, otherwise I would taste bitter, have a lot of seeds, and be yellow. Yuck! 🤢 I can be eaten fresh or pickled! In fact when I'm pickled I'm called... PICKLES!

Español: pepino
​
​You are so smart! 
Watch the video to learn more about how it grows.

​You could say I'm a power house vegetable. My scent is powerful enough that people used to keep me to scare away vampires. I was given to ancient Olympians to make them stronger. Before modern medicine, I was thought to fight illness. People would even put me on their cuts. Thankfully, we have Band-aids now!

​My bulb grows under the ground. My bulb holds water and nutrients for my plant, so even if the weather isn't perfect for growing, I can still survive. I have long green leaves that grow above the ground.

The part you eat is also the seed. 

​Before I'm picked, the farmer stops watering my plant and starts the curing process, where I'm dried out. The farmer knows I'm ready for picking when there are 5 to 6 skins. After I'm picked, I'm dried out in the sun. Leaves cover the bulb to make sure I don't get sunburned!

Español: ​ajo

Skip the garlic powder and try adding garlic cloves into your next dish! 

Feed your food curiosity! Snackster Sam provides fun and educational content about food that grows. Join the adventure. Download the Snackster Sam app from Google Play or the App Store!

​Hey, Snacksters! Happy Valentine's Day! Watch the video to learn more about Passion Fruit.

Chickpeas (also called Garbanzo beans) are seeds, not a bean! It's a plant from the pea family. It's an important plant used in main dishes across the world and can grow without a lot of water.  

HOW IT GROWS
Chickpeas grow on a bushy plant. It grows small white or reddish flowers. The seed then grows in a pod, just like a pea. The pods release acid (chemicals) through tiny hairs on the pod and stems of the plant. This protects it from insects, but it can also put holes in your clothing! A fresh chickpea is green, but this isn't a common way to eat it. Instead, the plant is naturally dried out from the heat of summer. By September, the plant is ready to harvest. 
​
Watch to learn more about How it Grows!

​Hey, Snacksters! Mushrooms don't need sunlight to grow! Learn how it grows below!

Don't forget to explore the other planets on the Snackster Sam app for more fun. 🚀

Cauliflower is a vegetable that can be used in a variety of ways, but did you know it's actually a flower?
​
HOW IT GROWS
Cauliflower plants grow about 1.5 feet tall. The plant has large rounded leaves. In the center of the plant grows a firm group of flowers, which is the cauliflower. When the cauliflower is about the size of a tennis ball, the leaves surrounding it are tied together to shade the cauliflower. Growers could skip this step, but the cauliflower would turn yellow and buyers prefer white cauliflower. 
Watch to learn more about How it Grows!


DID YOU KNOW

• Cauliflower has more vitamin C than an orange!
• Cauliflower is a bunch of flowers, and if it's harvested too late, the flower starts to pull apart. 
• Cauliflower means "flowered cabbage"
• You can also grow orange, purple, green, and brown cauliflower!

HOW TO EAT IT
You can eat cauliflower fresh. It is also enjoyed roasted (baked). It is not recommended to boil it, because it will turn to mush - it's a flower after all!

​Did you know you can eat the broccoli sprouts, the leaves, and the flower?  The flower is the part you normally eat!