Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Chayote Stir-fry



Most of the people I know "looks down" on this vegetable. They do not consider Chayote or Mirliton pear (locally known as Sayote) a good veggie. A friend even told me that Chayote does not contain any nutrition, it is just all water. In my family, we do not cook this often, because, as regular readers know, Hubby considers only vegetables that are "green" and "leafy" as true vegetables. Chayotes are also bland tasting, so aside from using them as meal extenders (i.e. for decoration or texture), I do not know what else to do with them.

Perpectives change of course. I have read from magazines about chayote fries, which are a lot better and healthier than the starchy french fries. I have read that chayotes can replace apples in apple pies. But I was convinced when a grandmother (lola) brought this dish to school (where our children and in her case, grandchildren go), to share in our weekly lunch potluck. Wow! Her stir fry chayote dish is so flavorful and yummy. All the mommies (and grandmas) were literally digging into her dish non-stop. :)

Aside from being yummy and inexepensive, I also found out that chayotes are rich in amino acids and vitamin C. So now, there is no reason why chayotes should not be served more often. Here is lola's recipe for Chayote Stir-fry:


2 pcs chayote, halved, seed removed, then sliced
200 gms shrimps, shelled, chopped
100 gms lean ground pork
4 T cooking oil
2 slices ginger
4 T garlic, minced
4 tomatoes, seeded, chopped
dash of fish sauce (patis)
salt and pepper to taste


1. Save the shells of the shrimps. Pound them with a little water (1 to 2 Tablespoons) to extract juice. Save the juice, discard the shells.

2. Heat up the cooking oil in a wok. Add the ginger and saute until fragrant. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant but not burnt. Add in the tomatoes and cook for a while, until some juices come out (around 2 to 3 minutes).

3. Add in the ground pork. Cook until meat changes color. Add in the shrimps and shrimp juice. When the shrimps changes color, add in the sliced chayotes. Mix everything up for a while and make sure all the chayote slices are covered with the sauce. Add in a dash or two of fish sauce (patis). Mix again and cover until chayotes are cooked and softened.

4. Adjust seasoning - salt and pepper, to taste. Dish up and serve hot with rice.



Being the lazy cook that I am, I omitted the first step of extracting the juices from the shells. :) The dish still tastes delicious. Of course with the added shimp juice, lola's dish was more flavorful than mine.



Sharing this dish with the featured Chayote to the Weekend Herb Blogging community. This foodie event was launched by Kalyn of Kalyn's Kitchen to feature herbs and unique plant ingredients around the world and the dishes we prepare using these ingredients. This week's host is Zorra from Kochtopf . To see last week's featured plants and dishes, please see Gretchen's Canela Y Comino.

30 comments:

  1. I have only tasted chayote once. It is a bit appley in texture. I had no idea it had so many uses, thanks!

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  2. This looks really tasty! Grandmothers' recipes are always the best. I'm not really familiar with chayote myself, but I'm certainly willing to try more of it.

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  3. What a coincidence! I have two chayote in my fridge and have been meaning to stir-fry them with shrimp too. :)

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  4. Haha, that's funny, re the only green leafies are REAL vegetables. =D

    Our household loves chayote!

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  5. Natashya, chayote is indeed apple-y, so I know it can be used to make mock apple pie. Hmmm... I have to look for that recipe...

    Fearless Kitchen, I'm still not so familiar, too. But it is always good to know more veggies available...

    WC, I suppose foodie-minds think alike?? :)

    TS, really? I have never met a household here that loves chayote! :) Maybe you can share your chayote recipes? :)

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  6. Hey Ning, thanks for checking my blog out today. You have a nice one yourself. I am gonna put u in my follow list, so I can stay up to date with your posts.
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  7. I keep seeing this but I've yet to try it... gonna try making it some day coz yours look good :)

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  8. Hello Divya! Thanks for dropping by! Found yours through the Recipe Muncher. :)

    Noobcook, thank you! You can stir fry chayote with more flavorful ingredients like shrimps. My mom would simply add oyster sauce. It would also taste good. :)

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  9. I really disliked chayote growing up and I haven't had it in a long time. Time to revisit this, I guess.

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  10. I only heard cucumbers are all water and no nutrition, not chayote.

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  11. Never heard of chayote before, that's why I love WHB. I can learn a lot. Thank you for your post.

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  12. Jude, I didn't like it either. Until I tasted the chayote fries and this stir fry.

    But Tigerfish, cucumbers have Vitamin C, right?

    Hi Zorra! Looking forward to the round-up! :)

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  13. What in the world is a chayote??

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  14. This does sound like it would be very tasty! I've sen chayote in the store here, but never cooked with it.

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  15. yum! ginisang chayote! i am so gonna make this as soon as i buy some chayote! the recipe sounds so delish!

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  16. I chanced upon your blog while searching for how to cook chayote which I saw it today at the supermarket. Very curious will table in my cooking menu soon. Tks for sharing. :)

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  17. Hello Dear,
    Really your blog is very interesting.... it contains great and unique informaiton. I enjoyed to visiting your blog. It's just amazing.... Thanks very much for the share & keep posting such an informative articles. I'm looking forward to your blog. Thanks!

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  18. I have only know 3 recipe of chayote. thanks to inspire me.

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  19. I love chayote, this is a delicious vegetable, and it is easy to cook, I have made a lot of recipes with this, but this not yet, thanks for sharing...

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