Chayote Part One
Posted by terrepruitt on October 28, 2019
My husband texted me from work one day and said he was bringing home a vegetable called a Chayote. I had never heard of it so I had to look it up. The information on the internet said it was actually a fruit, but eaten like a vegetable. What I saw said it didn’t need to be peeled and could be boiled, steamed, fried, roasted, baked, mashed, sliced, diced, and even eaten raw. But the chayote the internet was referring to didn’t have spikes. The ones my husband brought home had spikes. So it was recommended that we cut off the spikes and peel it before cooking. I am sure it will come as no surprise to anyone that I roasted it. I roasted it just like I do all the veggies! But what may come as a surprise to you . . . as it sure did to me was that it ate my flesh!
Ok, so that might be a bit dramatic, but . . . as usual I didn’t take a lot of time researching it. I looked it up quickly and saw that, as I said, the internet says it is a fruit eaten like a vegetable. The initial search return was showing it as a squash. So – squash, it can easily be peeled cut up and cooked. Well, I was forgetting that it is a fruit. So, my plan to quickly wash, peel, slice, and stick it in the oven on time bake before I left for class was quickly SQUASHED after I cut the ends off and sliced it in half. IT HAD A SEED.
ALSO, it was slippery as heck. I couldn’t actually hold the outside of it as it was spiky and my attempt to use my vegetable peeler failed. So I was trying to hold it on the exposed flesh. My first thought was that it would cook up slimy like okra because it was so slippery!
So I googled something – I don’t even remember what because I was in such a hurry. The result came back with some video of some guy saying to cut one end off (ok, too late for that) then he used the portion that he cut off to rub the fruit at the cut end which produced some foaming stuff. He said you needed to do that for a few minutes to pull out the enzyme that makes it bitter. I tried that, but I think I could not get the same result because I had already cut it in half, so I was trying to rub the exposed part. Remember, I had been treating it like SQUASH because I had seen it called squash.
I had to use a knife to peel the skin off and by this time I was using a towel to hold it because it was so spiky and slippery. I ran out of time, I had to leave to teach my yoga class so I only managed to peel one. I put them in a bag and then in the fridge to deal with when I got home.
As I was getting ready to go to class I noticed my fingers were peeling. They were the same as when I use peroxide without gloves. They were cracked, dry, and rough. I decided I had better use gloves when I was handling those things. Looking it up now, FoodUniversity.com says that it contains an enzyme that could cause your hands to peel when eaten in large quantities. Well, I think that just handling it will do that.
So on my second go at this wily fruit I wore gloves. I tried to cut it in half using the seed as a guide, so cutting on the outside edge of the seed. Then I used a knife to cut the skin off. Then I sliced it.
The internet says it has a lot of nutritional benefits!
Have you ever had chayote?
Terre Pruitt's Blog 
rachelmankowitz said
I’ve only seen chayote with smooth skin. Those spikes look scary! I used it in a stew, and it worked out fine, but it wasn’t especially exciting.
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terrepruitt said
I believe these were garden grown or small farm, not commercially produced. And the person that gave them to us said that commercially the spikes have been modified out of them. The spikes made it impossible to hold and cut. The video – I wish I remembered what I used as a search – had mentioned that it is used to make soup that is like “chicken soup”, as in really good for you!
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Nilzeitung said
Seen 1000 times and never ,,, never eaten, thank you very much, I’ll try it out !!!!
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terrepruitt said
Really, you’ve seen them? I don’t think I have, but I might have, but my eyes would have just glanced over such an intimidating looking fruit/veggie. I would have thought, “What?!?” I am so happy that my husband’s co-worker shared them with us. Thanks for commenting!
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Nilzeitung said
I’d like to add, “It’s pretty healthy and contains lots of vitamin C, folic acid, fiber and various trace elements.
This is a vegetable style is the chayote, and basically nobody likes it.
The Chayote, also known as Laplap, Chowchow, Mirliton and Buddha’s hand melon, is a pumpkin, just like zucchini and cucumber, which also means. In particular, it is native to central Mexico, where it can be considered as a Mexican version of zucchini: under the right circumstances, it grows like crazy weeds and produces a large amount of edible fruits (the pumpkin / melon / pumpkin family) members are all plant fruits ( not vegetables). good Appetit
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terrepruitt said
HA! Thank you. I did not reply to this comment until my third chayote post I had planned was posted. (https://terrepruitt.com/2019/11/04/chayote-part-three/) I had it all typed up and ready to go because I wanted to share the benefits in my post. Since my very first post mentioned it had nutritional benefits, I wanted to share them. I didn’t want you – in a comment – to beat me to it. 🙂
It sounds like the chayote is known by different things in different places of the world. It also seems like some things have the same name as other things. I know the Buddha Hand to be a lemon-like fruit/citrus fruit with long “fingers”. But after reading your comment I looked up Buddha Hand Melon and it looks like some people call the chayote that. Also, there are whole cultures that like the chayote, so I don’t agree that “nobody likes it”. I heard one person claim that in Mexico they use it in soup and it is likened to Chicken soup in that it delivers a lot of the same medicinal benefits. I don’t know if that is true, but I thought it was interesting.
This is what I know of as a Buddha Hand. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddha%27s_hand I can’t post pictures to in my comments so I am sharing a link.
Thanks for sharing your information.
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Nilzeitung said
Sorry for the delay.
I just wanted to help, I’m very sorry, but still, continue writing, only so we can all know profiteers !!!! thanks to them very
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terrepruitt said
🙂 Thanks for participating. It is always fun to “talk” to other bloggers!
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Nilzeitung said
Sorry, late reply, yes they are right, that’s fun if people understand, before the other existence, with know diving, tip, or whatever, good people help to live and live like the bread you can, many thanks !!!!
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terrepruitt said
🙂
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Nilzeitung said
🙂thank you for smiling,,, I’m also sorry because time shift comes my answer with delay,🙂🙂
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terrepruitt said
Oh, the time difference is no problem. Sometimes I don’t check my comments right away. It is nice to chat over blog comments!
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Nilzeitung said
Oh, time difference is a problem as yesterday your post I did not answer right away, because time zone and winter time makes us here in the EU, weak.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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terrepruitt said
Yes, time zones are very funny. I was reading a blog yesterday (Friday, Nov. 8) and a comment posted said Nov. 9. So funny to me how that is!
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Nilzeitung said
👋😁👍🙋♂️Thank you, yes, time zones are very funny. I woke up awake until 01.30 early, and bloger from japan just went to work, i had to say good night, jezit in indonsian is 10.11 2019, so wonderful earth with plan and system that has forgotten people of the senses, sunset, with us where other sun rise, wish you (family) beautiful Saturday night. Thank you very much !!!
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terrepruitt said
I have a cousin in another state and he used to be saying “Good morning” when I was saying “Good night”. Now-a-days he gets up later and I go to bed earlier.
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Nilzeitung said
Good morning, tomorrow, there we have it,. It is important that we find a healthy dipstick to live on this beautiful earth. Inner souls peace, stay healthy in every situation. Dancing is also important, as the Masai Wüssten dance.
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terrepruitt said
Dancing – if it is something the person enjoys – is a great way to help the soul have peace AND help one stay healthy.
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Nilzeitung said
thanks a lot ::::: Dancing – is part of art, art makes people, insbesonderes if against poverty courage or wars, or human rights injury, and much more, but also healthy because of movement. Do not exaggerate (cardiovascular). it is also healthy
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terrepruitt said
Dance, in some form, is part of every culture. 🙂
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Nilzeitung said
Die Königin von Saba////Yes, thanks to ancient Upper Egypt they have invented since the kings of saba brought with them by Salmon, until today dance is part of every culture. 🙂
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terrepruitt said
And used for different things.
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Nilzeitung said
👋😊And used for different things. of course, wedding Krige, birth, ill healing, life, dead, and much more …… wish you a nice weekend !!
Thank you back to you, my God, 1000 thanks, how great,
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terrepruitt said
Exactly.
You have a great weekend, too!
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Nilzeitung said
Good night and good weekend too, sorry before late reply my eyes have last night have scolded with me and said enough, and snare for today, I followed them wecould not answer immediately, thank you too. (you too)
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Nilzeitung said
Thank you, have a nice weekend ! ^ L^) ))))))))))))))))
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terrepruitt said
Yes, thank you, you too!
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Nilzeitung said
you too!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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