Jicama with Spicy Lime Dipping Salt

I hesitate to say this because I saw, on pinterest, a comment about my Crack Broccoli that was like, "Really--kids ate this over cupcakes????? Please." But I am going to anyway: at a party, we ran out of jicama and spicy lime dipping salt before we ran out of chicken wings and grape-jelly meatballs and cheesecake bites. And, just to be clear, it was not a party we threw for, say, a spa manager or Kate Moss. This is just wildly, shockingly good. The jicama is sweet and supercrunchy and green-bean tasting, and the dipping salt is spicy and limey and perfect. Kids love this; grown-ups love this; you will love it too, I almost promise.

If you have never bought a jicama before, buy one now. It will be in the supermarket near the other root vegetables that you scuttle nervously past: the scary yucca and tarro and Jerusalem artichokes. It is brown and and leathery and, at this time of year, a little beat-up looking. But then it will be refreshingly crisp and pretty inside. If you can't find, or are too afraid of, the jicama, try the dipping salt with watermelon. Yum.

For some reason, I couldn't help imagining that my jicama had a bad personality. What? You don't look so great yourself, lady.  Or maybe I was feeling bad because, on top of all its other aesthetic problems, there was the fact that I dropped it in the driveway when I was getting out of the car.

Phbbbt! I'm not the only one with a whisker growing out of my mole!

But it's like a geode. A vegetal root geode. Inside, it is creamy white and gorgeous. Actually, quite deep inside. With this bad fellow, I had to pare away a great deal of skin and fibrous and oddly tan flesh before I got to the good part. This is more of a paring-knfie situation than a vegetable-peeler one.

Spicy Lime Dipping Salt

A few things. You're going to be like, "Why the sugar?" And why the sugar is that, otherwise, it is really too salty when you dip into it. But feel free to try it that way, if you want to. You can, of course, vary the amount of cayenne to suit your taste, or you can try something else spicy (I go back and forth on chipotle here, since I actually find the smokiness a little distracting). And the citric acid. I know. But it's the only dry way I know to add a little tartness to something. Mine came from a brewers' supply store, but you can order it online or, possibly, get it at the supermarket.

1 tablespoon kosher salt (or half as much table salt)

1 tablespoon sugar

¼ teaspoon cayenne

1/8 teaspoon citric acid (optional)

The finely grated zest of 1 scrubbed lime

In a mortar and pestle (or another grinding device of your choosing), grind all the ingredients together until finely powdered.

Serve with peeled jicama cut into narrow strips or with watermelon or cantaloupe cubes.

I got my mortar and pestle at Marshall's for $10, and I am in love with it.