chayote

[prettygoodword]

chayote (chee-YOH-tay, chay-YOH-tee) - n., a tropical American perennial vine (Sechium edule) with tuberous roots and an edible pear-shaped fruit; the fruit eaten as a vegitable.


The tuber and stems are also edible, but not as commonly eaten. Native to Mexico but now cultivated throughout Latin America and Asia. Also called mirliton (southern US), choko (Australia), and christophene (?) -- in Chinese, fóshǒuguā or Buddha hand melon. The name above is an Americanism from Mexican Spanish, from Nahuatl chayohtli.


Thanks, WikiMedia!


And that wraps up another week of WTFWWF -- next week will be another of the Regular Mix.

---L.

Comments

[minoanmiss]

oh huh! I ate these as a child (well, was fed them). The skin is tough; the flesh is pale green, watery, and inoffensive when cooked (which is a good characteristic for a vegetable one is feeding to a child).

[prettygoodword]

They take well to the spicing of the other ingredients.

[minoanmiss]

That they do! You've had them too?

[prettygoodword]

A few times. They're available locally in some grocery stores.

[minoanmiss]

Cool! What cuisines have you been cooking them with? My family is Jamaican, and my mother definitely did pair chayote with spicy soups and stews.

[prettygoodword]

We're close to the Mexican border, so, well, that. I've not cooked much with them myself -- it's mostly been dishes by friends and in restaurants.

[minoanmiss]

That makes sense, and that's so nifty to know!