BELIZEAN CHOCHO'S - Is it a Pear? Is it a Cucumber? Is it a Potato? You Be the Judge

CHO CHO'S IN BELIZE
The Jamaican cho cho is a tropical fruit that is a native of Mexico, Belize and Central America.  It carries a thin green skin fused with its flesh. 

There are quite a few varieties; however they all have pear or slightly oval shape.  For this reason, in some Spanish speaking countries - the world cho cho means, vagina.

The Jamaican  cho cho is used by many as a vegetable or fruit.  As a fruit, it has a rather bland taste, when eaten raw in salads or salsa with lemon juice.  As a vegetable (often in a cooked form), it tastes like something between a potato or a cucumber.

The Jamaican  cho cho is a good source of vitamin C and amino acids. It adapts well to the tropics and has become a major food in diets for many here in Belize.  While Belizean's only eat the fruit portion of the plant, other countries use other parts of the plant as well (such as the root,  which has a rather starchy taste).  The cho cho leaves are believed to have diuretic and cardiovascular properties. In some Asian countries the shoot is consumed as a vegetable.

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