How to Grow Oca

Want to learn how to grow oca? Growing oxalis tuberosa (oca) offers a great source of carbohydrates, phosphorus and iron, as well as essential amino acids that promote total body health.

By William Woys Weaver
Updated on March 1, 2023
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by AdobeStock/janmarie37

Want to learn how to grow oca? Growing oxalis tuberosa (oca) offers a great source of carbohydrates, phosphorus and iron, as well as essential amino acids that promote the health and proper function of muscles, organs, nails, hair, skin and more.

Learn How to Grow Oca

Oca (Oxalis tuberosa) is a long-ignored South American tuber that is now beginning to show up in markets that specialize in unusual Latin American ingredients. Oca (also spelled ocha) is a highly productive perennial plant with waxy, brightly colored tubers that are perfect as a season-extending crop — they’re best harvested from the garden or greenhouse in late December or early January. In its native lands of Bolivia and Peru, oca is second only to the potato in agricultural importance. It is an excellent source of carbohydrates, phosphorus and iron, as well as essential amino acids that promote the health and proper function of muscles, organs, nails, hair, skin and more.

It’s hard to generalize about oca’s flavor and culinary attributes, because there are so many kinds: Some are best eaten raw; others are best boiled, baked or steamed. Sun-dried oca can be eaten like dried figs or stewed like fruit. Oca tubers also can be grilled, fried or candied like sweet potatoes. As for flavor, they vary from potato-like, to chestnut-sweet, to apple and celery. ‘Apricot,’ a new variety from New Zealand, is similar in taste to its namesake. Oca’s clover-like leaves and yellow, trumpet-shaped flowers are edible and make great additions to salads.

Actually, oca is not new to horticulturists — it was introduced to England, the United States and France as a novelty during the 1830s. Known as “South American wood sorrel” (it’s a cousin of the common wood sorrel), it caused such a stir that enthusiasts held oca parties where entire meals were constructed around these fascinating tubers.

Its most common name is oca, the Spanish spelling thought to be derived from oqa, a word from the Quechua language indigenous to the Andean region and spoken by the Incas. However, in many parts of South America, other names such as quiba, hibias, timbo, apilla and even papa roja (“red potato”) are common, so reading regional cookbooks can be challenging unless you have a South American dialect dictionary on hand.

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