Chayote tops

Chayote, also known as christophene or alligator pear, is a vegetable widely consumed in the Philippines. Often times it is cooked stir fried along with other vegetables. It has a tender texture and has a mild sweetness to it. I like chayote very much. I like the way my sharp knife slides into the almost transparent flesh.

This time however, for the very first time, I am using its leaves
and shoots. I am not yet familiar to dishes using so I’m sticking
to the basics. Steamed. The leaves has a fuzzy feeling to the touch. Compared to sweet potato tops or malunggay leaves this one doesn’t have a distinct aftertaste. Almost tasteless.

I found out through Wikipedia that leaves and fruit have diuretic,
cardiovascular and anti-inflammatory properties, and a tea made
from the leaves has been used in the treatment of arteriosclerosis
and hypertension, and to dissolve kidney stones.

Knowing that I knew cooking it this way isn’t a very bad idea. Indeed.
Here, it serves as a side dish. I added a couple of squash blossoms for additional color. It goes best with fried fish and soy sauce with a squeezed calamansi.

This was originally posted at http://saltforvanilla.wordpress.com