Another ABCD Mommy: The Curious Chayote Squash

Have you ever seen this interesting little item at the grocery store?

Chayote Squash...

It took me a while before I connected this strange looking vegetable to the curried version of this known in Kannada as "seeme-badhnakai palya" that I've been eating since I was a kid. Once I figured it out, it quickly became a staple in our house once in every two weeks or so... and cooking it up is so easy:

What you need (enough for two to three people):

- 2 chayote squashes (if you can't find it at your regular grocery store, you can probably find it at the Indian store)

- 2-3 tablespoons of vegetable oil

- 1-2 small green chilis (depending how spicy you want it)

- 1 tablespoon of vangi bath powder (you can find this powder at your local Indian store)

- 1-2 teaspoons of mustard seeds

- 1/2 teaspoon turmeric

- pinch of hing

- 1 teaspoon of channa dal

- 1 teaspoon udad dal

- small amount of shredded coconut to garnish (if you want)

- salt to taste

Here's what you do:

- Peel, wash and chop the chayote squash into cubes and keep it to the side (the flat seed in the center of the squash is easy to overlook, but make sure you take it out when chopping).

- Warm up the oil with the mustard seeds, turmeric and hing within it (this curry is easiest to make in a deep dish open skillet like this one).

- When mustard seeds start to pop, add the vangi bath powder, channa dal and the udad dal to the oil for a few seconds before also adding in the chopped chayote squash (watch this step carefully because the dal will burn quickly).

- Add a bit of water (about a 1/2-3/4 cup of water), reduce to low heat, and cover the squash to let it cook. As the squash cooks, the water will boil out and disappear.

- Keep monitoring the squash and add small amounts of water, when needed, until it is fully cooked and tender.

- Add salt to taste and a bit of shredded coconut (if you want) and mix it all together and you're done!

The finished product - Curried Chayote Squash or "Seeme Badhnakai Palya"

I personally like to eat it with these Malaysian Roti Parathas that you get in the Indian store...

And, as a bonus! I also found this yummy-looking recipe for an egg and cheese casserole with chayote squash in it. I have not tried this yet, but it definitely looks like a good weekend recipe to try out some time!