GO LOCO FOR CHOKO

By T Coulter

Half way between a potato and a cucumber, could this shapeshifting vegetable/fruit end world hunger? Probably not, but read on to find out all the wonders of this easy to grow vine!

Someone gave me three full chokos that I could either:

a) eat- or since they were starting to sprout-

b) plant.

I opted for the ‘teach a man to fish option’, and about a month later, you can see 2/3 had taken hold in the soil and were well on their way! I told my dad, and he started to tell me his experience of when he tried to sell chokos way back in the 1960s (queue wobbly ripple and dreaming harp sound).

The year was 1962 in Manly, Sydney. Summer was the season, sunny was the day. My dad’s grandmother had a vine of this mysterious choko plant. It grew so many, that after my dad and his brother grew sick of throwing them at one another, and thought- like so many children often do- to sell them to the deep-pocketed residence of Manly/Fairfield. They set up a stand with the surplus of the wrinkly vegetable, and by the end of the day- they hadn’t sold one.

Today not much has changed. Before these were handed to me, I hadn’t heard of them either. But I’m here to change all that in this zine that probably about six people will read! These fruit/vegetables are amazing, and they have a treasure trove of uses and benefits. I’ve deep dived for you, and in BuzzFeed fashion compiled a pros and cons easy-to-read list.

Pros

• Can go either way to fruit or vegetable as it is quite mild and absorbs the flavour of whatever it’s in; therefore could make a good curry, or is often used in jams as a filler (supplement for apple or pear).
• Grows very easily and is a perennial (5-6 years). You’ll have enough to pelt at your siblings and sell on the street.
• The flowers on the vine are unisex, so they pollinate themselves.
• Choko is high in vitamin C and rich in folate, magnesium, and potassium – bye bye heart attacks!
• Speaking of folate, eating one choko will provide you with 40% of the folate you need daily if you are pregnant (ew).
• Dogs can eat it
• Easy to prepare and cook
• They can be stored in the fridge without going off for up to a month
• Low in calories but high in fibre – good appetite suppressant.
• After planting, it doesn’t take long to fruit (about 120-150 days)
• Technically all parts of the choko are edible skin, flesh, and seeds.
• You can eat it raw or cooked (I’m picturing a crunchy grated choko thai/mint/chili salad)

Cons

• Poor marketing, people of Sydney don’t want to be seen with them
• Looks ugly
• The dreaded moth vine often gets mistaken for it

Other facts

-Full name is chayote (Sechium edule).

-Choko belongs to the gourd family, Cucurbitaceae, with other members being cucumber, squash and watermelon.

-It is considered a savoury fruit.

-It was first cultivated in Mesoamerica

Despite appearances I hope this article has convinced you to go locooooo for chokooooo