Chayote. Custard marrow. A Central American food plant, it is a bulbous, pear-shaped gourd which grows on a vine, with pale green, ridged skin and about the size of an avocado. It is a bland vegetable, somewhat like a cucumber in flavour, with a little spice when fresh. It should be treated in the same way as vegetable marrow or aubergine (US: eggplant) and, like them, should be cooked before eating. Leaves and shoots are also edible when young.
