Roasted Cho Cho Soup (Chayote Soup)(Vegan)

Learn how to make some vegan friendly cho cho (chayote) soup. This delicious soup is inexpensive, creamy, filling with a subtle hint of spiciness.

 

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• Reasons to make this recipe
• Ingredients you need
• The steps
• Notes and tips
• More soup recipes to make
• Roasted Cho Cho Soup (Chayote Soup)(Vegan)

If you're like me and ALWAYS have some chayote which I grew up calling cho cho to hand then you will defintely want to try this recipe.

For the sake of search optimisation I will use the term chayote and cho cho interchangeably.

Growing up I didn't really like cho cho (chayote) but ate it anyway, we would mostly have it in our Saturday soup and didn't do much experimenting beyond that.

As a Caribbean foodie, I enjoy experimenting with fruit and vegetables that I grew up with, you'd be amazed at the things you can do with cho cho.

You can bake, roast, air fry or even steam it, that's just how diverse this fruit truly is.

Have you ever thought about making soup with it? I don't mean adding it to bulk up a recipe.

If there is one soup recipe that you should try it is this one! The star of the show (cho cho/chayote) is roasted with the skin on (so no peeling is required) first which imparts a MUCH DEEPER flavour which is such a game changer.

The base ingredients - olive oil, onion, garlic and ginger are sauteed, again this helps to enhance the flavour of the soup and combined with my to go herbs - chadon beni and thyme along with scotch bonnet for an optional spicy kick.

To make the soup creamy I use coconut milk along with vegetable broth which keeps the soup vegan friendly.

I let the soup simmer for a short period of time before transferring it to my blender to puree into a velvety smooth nutrient rich soup.

Reasons to make this recipe

• Chayote/cho cho is a staple food that is used in the Caribbean diet
• It is an inexpensive/budget friendly meal
• This soup is versatile and suitable for most dietary requirements
• A great way to use chayote/cho cho aside from just adding it to bulk up Saturday soup
• Low in calories/high in fibre and perfect for weightloss (source)
• Easy to make with simple ingredients

Ingredients you need

• Cho cho - known as chayote/christophine/mirlion this is a water soluble fruit although it is treated like a cooking vegetable.
• Coconut milk - Make sure to use full fat and not light coconut milk.
• Vegetable broth - I like to use my homemade version of this!
• Chadon beni/thyme - These are to go to Caribbean herbs.
• Olive oil - For sauteing the base ingredients.
• Scotch bonnet - This is optional, but I like to use a small amount to give the soup a slight spicy kick to it.
• Black pepper and pink salt - To enhance the taste of the soup.

The steps

• Preheat the oven to 180C/356F/gas mark 4.
• Lineva baking tray with parchment paper and grease with olive oil then set aside.
• Chop the cho cho into chunks (you can leave the skin on, if it has no brown spots).
• Place the chopped cho cho on the tray, spread out and coat the top with olive oil.

• Roast the cho cho for 40 minutes or until lightly golden.
• Remove the tray from the oven and set aside.
• Add the olive oil on medium heat in a medium sized saucepan.
• Saute the onion, garlic and ginger until soft and translucent.

• Add the chadon beni, thyme, scotch bonnet and the roasted cho cho and mix to combine.
• Pour in the vegetable broth and coconut milk.
• Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 5 minutes.

• After the given time, transfer the contents of the soup into a blender (or you can use an immersion stick instead).
• Do a taste test and add black pepper and pink salt to taste.

Notes and tips

• You can purchase chayote/cho cho/christophine from most markets that have a high population of Caribbean/Latinos.
• You can add other ingredients such as celery, leeks, sweet potatoes etc...
• If you don't have chadon beni simply use coriander or parsley instead.
• Feel free to use vegan butter instead of olive oil for sauteing the base ingredients.
• Keep in mind, peeling of the skin isn't required if there are no brown spots.
• Don't forget to do a taste test of the soup prior to serving.
• This is the recipe link that you need for my Vegetable Broth recipe
• Any leftovers can be refrigerated for a few days once cool.
• This recipe is freezer friendly and can be frozen for up to 3 months.

More soup recipes to make

• Vegan Roasted Red Pepper Tomato Soup
• Spicy Chicken Soup Recipe
• Vegan Pea Soup 
• Cuban Black Bean Soup
• Trinidad Corn Soup
• Spicy Cabbage Detox Soup
• Vegan Carrot and Lentil Soup
• Chicken Noodle Soup Recipe
• Creamy Vegan Mushroom Soup Recipe 

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