Chayote Squash Chutney | Chow - Chow Chutney - Vidhya’s Vegetarian Kitchen

square image of chow chow chutney kept in a small ceramic bowl

5 from 3 votes

Chayote Squash Chutney | Chow - Chow Chutney

A spicy and lip-smackingly delicious chow chow or chayote squash chutney without any lentils. Easy vegetable chutney - a perfect accompaniment for rice and tiffin.

Prep Time5

Cook Time20

Course: Entree

Cuisine: South Indian

Keyword: chow chow chutney

Servings:

Calories: 67kcal

Author: Srividhya G

Equipment

Sauce pan or kadai
Blender like Blendtec or Indian mixer jar

Ingredients

Measurement Details: 1 cup=240ml; 1 tbsp=15ml; 1tsp=5ml;

1 tbsp oil
1 chayote squash approx 300 grams seeds removed and chopped roughly if the peels are tender include the skin as well
1 cup onion chopped approx 150 grams
3 dried red chilies broken into small pieces
2 green chilies break into small pieces
2 garlic cloves cut into halves
½ tbsp salt or to taste
¼ cup cilantro chopped
5 mint leaves
15 to 20 curry leaves or 1 strand
¼ cup unsweetened dry coconut
1 tsp tamarind paste
2 to 3 tbsps of water

Instructions

In a pan heat the oil and when the oil is hot, add the chopped chayote squash along with the peel. Saute for about 3 to 4 minutes.
Now add the onion, broken dried red chilies, green chilies, garlic cloves, and salt. Mix thoroughly and saute again for 5 minutes or until the raw smell of the onion and garlic goes off.
Now add in the cilantro, mint leaves, curry leaves followed by the dry coconut. Mix and cook again for 2 minutes. The overall cooking time is 10 to 12 minutes. If your chayote squash is not tender, you might have to saute for a long time. Cook till the chayote squash is tender and al dente. You don't need to cook until it turns very soft and mushy.
Let it cool completely and grind it by adding 1 tsp of tamarind paste and very little water. 2 to 3 tbsps of water should be sufficient.
That's it; the chutney is ready. Serve it with rice. We don't need to temper this chutney.

Video

Notes

If using tamarind pulp/flesh - you can use small marble-sized tamarind. You can saute it along with chow chow. Add it while adding the onion so that it softens.
Adjust the salt and spice, but this chutney is slightly on the spicier side. So add the chilies accordingly.
You can add either 4 to 5 dried red chilies or 4 to 5 green chilies. I went with a combination of both, but that's not mandatory.
If you are planning to serve it only with rice, then grind this chutney coarsely. I usually use my chutney as a sandwich spread and also for idli and dosai. So I went with a smooth consistency.
Do not add more water while grind. 2 to 3 tbsps of water is more than sufficient.
You can replace chow chow with ivy gourd, snake gourd, cabbage, and make similar chutney.
I used dry unsweetened coconut for this recipe. But you can use fresh ones as well.
If you can't source curry leaves, please skip and increase the amount of cilantro and mint. Too much of mint will make it more like mint chutney. So keep mint leaves at bay.

Nutrition