Interesting! Did you know that chayotes are original to Mesoamerica, particularly central Mexico and parts of Central America? They were cultivated by the Aztecs and Mayans and were a staple food for these ancient civilizations. The chayote plant, a climbing vine, was then introduced to the Caribbean, and South America. Following the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire, chayote, along with other crops, was introduced to Europe, and later to Africa, Asia, and Australia.
In Peru, chayotes are known as "calabacita china" (roughly translated as, little Chinese squash). It's not a typical ingredient of Peruvian cuisine, but it's readily available in grocery stores and farmers' markets. Growing up at home, my mom would make this sort of simple stir-fry/stew that we all loved, and which probably came via my Turkish grandmother. It took me a while to find chayotes in the US (because I didn't know what they were called here), and when I finally did, my younger brother and I put together our heads to reproduce my mom's recipe! 😊
Interesting! Did you know that chayotes are original to Mesoamerica, particularly central Mexico and parts of Central America? They were cultivated by the Aztecs and Mayans and were a staple food for these ancient civilizations. The chayote plant, a climbing vine, was then introduced to the Caribbean, and South America. Following the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire, chayote, along with other crops, was introduced to Europe, and later to Africa, Asia, and Australia.
In Peru, chayotes are known as "calabacita china" (roughly translated as, little Chinese squash). It's not a typical ingredient of Peruvian cuisine, but it's readily available in grocery stores and farmers' markets. Growing up at home, my mom would make this sort of simple stir-fry/stew that we all loved, and which probably came via my Turkish grandmother. It took me a while to find chayotes in the US (because I didn't know what they were called here), and when I finally did, my younger brother and I put together our heads to reproduce my mom's recipe! 😊
imagine what the world would look like without the food discovered in America and brought back to the old world.