Chayote

Campania is famous for its tomatoes, lemons, and olive oil, but its fields and gardens hide many other edible treasures that rarely make it onto our plates. This article is about those less popular plants: ingredients that grow quietly around us, often overlooked, yet surprisingly versatile in the kitchen.

We’ll start with chayote, a plant that many people in Campania recognize by sight but not by name or by flavor. Often grown along fences or balconies as a decorative vine, chayote is actually a humble, adaptable vegetable with a long history and plenty of culinary potential. Getting to know it means rediscovering a small but fascinating piece of local food culture, and maybe finding a new favorite ingredient along the way.

An ancient cultivated plant, known to the Aztecs, Mayans, and other Native American tribes. Native to Central America, it is cultivated in various tropical and subtropical countries. Costa Rica is the main supplier of chayote.

Chayote arrived to the southern Italian region of Campania in the early 16th Century. Spain conquered the Kingdom of Naples in 1503 and connected it to the wider network of commercial and military routes that included the American colonies. Despite this, it was never grown on a large scale and remained a quiet presence in gardens and markets.

In Naples, chayote is known by many names: melanzana dei francesi (French aubergine), melanzana spinosa (thorny aubergine), or zucchina spinosa (thorny zucchini), inspired by its shape and by the small thorns found on local varieties. It is also called masciusce, a name that hints at its distant connections to Brazilian maxixe. Today, chayote is being rediscovered as a forgotten local ingredient, while its colonial journey is still largely unknown.

Although many people are familiar only with the fruit as being edible, the root, stem, seeds and leaves are edible as well. The tubers of the plant are eaten like potatoes and other root vegetables, while the shoots and leaves are often consumed in salads and stir-fries.

The fruit does not need to be peeled to be cooked or fried in slices. It has a very mild flavor. It is commonly served with seasonings or in a dish with other vegetables and flavorings. It can also be boiled, stuffed, mashed, baked, fried, or pickled in escabeche sauce. Both fruit and seed are rich in amino acids and vitamin C.

 

Chayote salad

Ingredients

 

3 chayotes, about ¾ to 1 pound each

Salt to taste, if desired

2 teaspoons imported mustard

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

6 tablespoons peanut, vegetable or corn oil

Freshly ground pepper to taste

2 teaspoons finely minced garlic

¼ teaspoon dried hot-pepper flakes

1 cup thin-sliced red onion

1 red bell pepper chopped into cubes

3 cups thin-sliced, halved red ripe tomatoes if available

¼ cup finely chopped parsley

2 flat fillets of anchovies, cut in small pieces

Preparation

 

1. Step 1

Using swivel-bladed paring knife, peel chayotes. Split in half and put in kettle with water to cover and salt to taste. Bring to boil and let simmer about 15 minutes or until just tender when pierced with fork. Drain and run briefly under cold water. Drain again. The seeds are edible.

2. Step 2

Cut each half crosswise. Cut the halves lengthwise into quarter-inch-thick slices. There should be five cups or slightly less.

3. Step 3

Put mustard, vinegar and oil in salad bowl. Blend well. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add chayotes and remaining ingredients. Blend well and serve cold.

 

credits: Narek and Evgeniia