Ema Nymton wrote:
>pltrgyst wrote:
>> Janet Wilder wrote:
>>
>>> I never thought of doing that, but it makes sense. The texture is almost
>>> identical and most of the time when you are using water chestnuts in
>>> Chinese cooking you are using it for texture.
>>
>> I can see the similarity in density, but does jicama give you that same
>> light crunch?
>
>Jicama is crunchy, the crunch is similar to a radish without the heat.

I don't think jicama is a substitute for water chestnut in oriental
dishes, it may be crunchy but not in a starchy way. If I didn't have
water chestnut I'd simply omit it. The closest vegetable I can think
of to water chestnut that's readily available are those canned
potatoes.