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Home » Recipes » Soups & Stews

Italian Chayote Squash Soup Recipe With Mussels

Published: Nov 7, 2019 · Modified: Jul 29, 2023. This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.

Recipe Jump to Video
Chayote squash soup pin
This Chayote squash recipe is great for seafood and gluten-free (no carbs) dinner parties, it can be served cold or warm. The creamy texture of the chayote creates a smooth mousse which is flavoured with seafood and its sweetness contrasted by the bitterness of the edible flower begonia

This Chayote soup recipe is similar to seafood chowder but is gluten- and dairy-free. The creamy texture of the chayote creates a naturally smooth texture, and there is no need to add cream or flour like in a chowder. This soup is served with mussels, and the bitterness of the Broccoli Rabe or edible flowers Begonia balances their sweetness. It is perfect for dinner parties, as it can be served cold or warm.

Italian Chayote Squash Soup Recipe With Mussels

Chayote squash sounds exotic but is grown locally and widely available in many Mediterranean countries. It is called Chocho in the Caribbean and Coko in Australia and New Zealand and is also known as Mirliton squash, vegetable pear, or mango squash.

It was introduced to Europe after the discovery of America and has adapted well to the local climate. It is very easy to grow, like a squash, although it requires a lot of water. The chayote season runs from October to November.

It has only one large seed in the center, and its pulp is very sticky. It has a mild flavor like zucchini but it has a crunchier and stickier pulp.

That is why when you boil it and blend it, it makes a beautiful foamy soup.

Chayote might look unusual, but you should not be intimidated. It is just a variety of zucchini, and you can cook it the same way.

Other recipes you can make by replacing zucchini with chayotes are: zucchini recipe pasta and ricotta, zucchini mushroom quiche, Ciambotta or Giambotta Italian vegetable stew.

For seafood ideas for the Feast of Seven Fishes, check out this Web Story.

Jump to:
  • Chayote and seafood
  • Ingredients
  • How to buy fresh mussels
  • Instructions
  • Serving the Chayote soup
  • Top tips
  • Substitution
  • 📋Italian Chayote Squash Soup Recipe With Mussels
  • Tips to make this Chayote squash recipe
  • Origin of this recipe
Chayote squash

Chayote and seafood

Due to the chayote's creamy texture, this recipe does not need carbs to thicken the soup, and it is carb-free and low-calorie.

Although Chayote has a peculiar characteristic, it is tasteless and is, therefore, an excellent base for mild soups like this one.

In this recipe, I blend it with a light fish sauce made with delicate fish fumet and mussel juice.

The bitterness of the edible flowers Begonia or Cime di Rapa balances the chayote's creaminess and the seafood's sweetness adding a depth of flavor.

Chayote mousse served on a plate with a spoon digging in it

Ingredients

To make this recipe, you will need to prepare the following ingredients:

  1. Fish stock or fumet
  2. Mussels and their juices
  3. Chayote mousse
  4. For decoration: edible flower begonia or broccoli rabe, rapini
Fumet Mussels Mousse

Fish stock or fumet

The base of this recipe is a fish stock or a fumet. The fish stock is easier to make, while the fumet requires additional steps. While the fish stock is made by boiling fish bones with vegetables, the fish fumet has more delicate and intense as it is flavored with wine and reduced.

You can find the recipes here; choose which one you want to use based on your time:

  • Homemade fish stock
  • Fish broth fumet

You can also buy fish stock already made at your fishmonger.

We often think that fish stock is too complicated, but it doesn't have to be, just don't throw away your shrimps or crab shells, that is all you need.

How to buy fresh mussels

Mussels are delicious when fresh, but they can be a dangerous source of seafood poisoning if not chosen correctly.

Buy them only from your trusted fishmonger and ask them to clean them as they are a pain in the neck.

They are often full of barnacles; when you try to clean them, your fingers get sore and bleed.

Personally, I always try to avoid mussels during the hot season, neither buying them or ordering them at restaurants.

The heat makes seafood more susceptible to attracting bacteria.

Fresh mussels should be cooked alive. If they are already dead they are dangerous to eat.

Here is how to check fresh mussels are alive:

  • Fresh mussels should be closed and cannot be opened by hand no matter how hard you try
  • Discharge any open or broken mussels
  • Rinse them under running water one by one and throw away any open or broken mussels
  • If they are open, but immediately close when you touch them, try to open them again. If you cannot reopen them, they are OK to eat.
fresh mussels in a pan

Instructions

How to cook the mussels

In this video, I make 1 lb - 500 gr of mussels as they sell them in such quantity, but you only need a small amount for this recipe.

In this occasion, I used them to make my next soup: seafood chowder.

However, you can freeze the leftover mussel juices and serve the remaining mussels with the main, like this cod and salmon fish pie or the ultimate seafood platter.

The ingredients are:

  • 1 lb - 500 gr of fresh mussels
  • 1 clove of garlic
  • 1 cup dry white wine
  • 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

Fresh mussels are naturally salted, you do not need to add any salt

This is how to proceed:

  1. In a large saucepan, stir fry 1 sliced clove of garlic.
  2. Put in the mussels and stir fry at medium-high heat covered until they are all open.
  3. Stir from time to time
  4. Add 1 cup of white wine and let it simmer for 1 minute until it evaporates
  5. When they are ready, remove the mussels
  6. Keep the water released by the mussels while cooking.
Cooking the mussels
  1. Strain the water through a paper cloth and let it rest so that any residual of sand will fall at the bottom.
  2. Clean the mussels and put them aside.
Filter the juices and cleaning the mussels

Top tips for cooking mussels

  • Fresh mussels are naturally salted. You do not need to add any salt
  • When cooking the mussels, keep the pan covered and turn them every once in a while to make sure they will all open
  • Once opened, the mussels are cooked
  • Do not overcook the mussels, two to three minutes are enough.
  • If some mussels are still not open, remove the opened ones from the pan and cook only the closed ones.
  • Any mussels that remain closed even after cooking should be discarded
  • Remove any broken open mussels after you have cooked them, but do not worry if you cooked a broken one with the others. The rest of the mussels will not be infected.

Cooking the chayote

  1. Peel the chayotes
  2. Remove the central seed and cut them in small cubes.
  3. Boil the chayote with 1 teaspoon of salt for 20 minutes at medium heat.
  4. Once the Chayote is fork tender, drain it and transfer it to a bowl to cool completely.
cleaning and boiling the chayote

Making the soup

Once all the main components are ready, we can put it all together.

We must mix the fish fumet, the water from the mussels, and the Chayote to make the mousse.

It is essential to mix the correct quantity to balance taste and consistency.

  1. Start by adding ½ cup of mussels water and ⅓ of fish fumet to the Chayote and blend in a food processor.
  2. Taste and add more fish fumet or mussels water until you reach your desired taste and texture.
making the mousse blending the chayote squash

Serving the Chayote soup

Once the mousse is ready, pour it into the dishes and decorate it with a few mussels and Begonia or broccoli rabe heads.

Drizzle with some extra virgin olive oil and black pepper.

This soup is best served cold,, but it can also be served warm. When eating, the sweetness of the mussel will be balanced by the acidity of the Cime di Rapa or the Begonia, all softly bounded by the Chayote mousse.

It is the perfect starter for a fancy no, carbs, low calories dinner!

As main you can serve:

  • Whole Sea Bream Recipe Cooked in Salt
  • Trout in a parcel with lemon and parsley served with basmati rice
  • Cod with potatoes
Chayote squash mussels mousse served on 2 plates and decorated with begonia

Top tips

Tips for the chayote squash

  • Chayote is just a zucchini squash with one large seed in the center. You can substitute it with other zucchini, but you may not get the same smooth texture.
  • The chayote has needles in its skin. Make sure they have been removed before you touch them. They usually do this at the supermarket.

Chayote is so smooth and creamy that there is no need to add potatoes or beans. This soup has no carbs, and since chayote is a squash, it is also very low on calories.

You can use chayote squash as a base for any no-carb soup you want to make!

Chayote mussels mousse on a spoon with a begonia

Edible flowers Begonia

Edible flowers are an excellent decoration to use for a festive dinner party. Not only do they add color to a particular dish,, but they also have a unique taste.

They are very versatile, and you can use them in many ways, but I prefer using them raw.

Cooking edible flowers ruins their beauty, and their fresh, colorful look brings joy to a dish.

The intense red color and the beautiful shape of the Begonia give such a festive look to this smooth mousse. They are the perfect combination of color as well as taste.

The Begonia has an acidic taste that breaks the chayote's sweetness and the seafood. It is so elegant floating on this light green foam, like a water lily.

edible flower Begonia

Substitution

A perfect replacement for Begonia is Boccoli rabe (Cime di Rapa) as they have a similar bitter taste.

Cime di Rapa node, also called Rapini, is commonly marketed as broccoli raab/rabe in the United States.

They look like tiny broccoli but have a bitter taste. In Italy, they are served stir-fried garlic, often with Orecchiette pasta.

We Italians cook them like broccoli, and we don't remove their bitter taste as this is what we like about them.
Chayote Squash Mousse with Mussels and Cime di Rapa

  1. Clean and boil the Cime di Rapa for 10 minutes in a separate pan with a teaspoon of salt.
  2. When done, drain them and put them in iced water to preserve their lovely green color.
  3. Add two to three heads in each plate
Cime di rapa on a strainer

If you are making the chayote squash soup, leave your comment below I would like to hear from you. You can find more delicious ideas if you FOLLOW ME on Facebook, YouTube, Pinterest and Instagram or sign up to my newsletter.

Chayote soup with mussels

📋Italian Chayote Squash Soup Recipe With Mussels

This Chayote soup recipe is similar to seafood chowder but is gluten- and dairy-free. The creamy texture of the chayote creates a naturally smooth texture, and there is no need to add cream or flour like in a chowder. This soup is served with mussels, and the bitterness of the Broccoli Rabe or edible flowers Begonia balances their sweetness. It is perfect for dinner parties, as it can be served cold or warm.
Prep Time 45 minutes minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes minutes
⏲️Total Time 1 hour hour 25 minutes minutes
Servings: 4 people
Print Rate SaveSaved!
Author: Laura Tobin

Ingredients
 
 

Mousse

  • 3 chayotes
  • 10 cime di rapa node

Mussels

  • 1 lb mussels
  • 1 clove peeled garlic cloves
  • 1 cup dry white wine
  • 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

Fish fumet

  • 1 small fish to make the fumet here I use gurnards
  • 2 cup dry white wine
  • ½ cup cherry tomatoes
  • 1 onion
  • 1 tablespoon concentrated tomato paste (optional)
  • salt & pepper
  • 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
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Equipment

  • Cutting board set
  • Wooden Turner Set
  • All-Clad Sauce Pan 3-Quart
  • All-Clad Fry Pan
  • Fine Mesh Strainer
  • Braun blender
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Instructions

Fish fumet/Stock

  • Put the gurnard in a small roasting pan with salt and pepper.
    1 small fish to make the fumet, salt & pepper
  • Add 1 cup of white wine and 4 cherry tomatoes cut into pieces.
    ½ cup cherry tomatoes, 2 cup dry white wine
  • Put the fish in a hot oven at 350 F - 180 C for 20 minutes.
  • In the meantime, stir fry a small onion and 3 chopped cherry tomatoes in a large pan to make the fish stock.
    1 onion, 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • Once the gurnard is done transfer it in the stock pan and add 1 spoon of concentrated tomato sauce.
    1 tablespoon concentrated tomato paste
  • To keep all the flavors of the roasting fish, pour some water in the roasting pan to deglaze it and pour it over the fish
  • Let it simmer for 20 minutes.
  • Strain the fumet with a paper cloth and let it cool off completely

Mousse

  • In the meantime peel the Chayotes and cut them in small cubes.
    3 chayotes
  • Boil the chayote for 20 minutes.
  • Once the Chayote is cooked, drain it and transfer it to a bowl to cool completely.

If you are using cime di rapa

  • Clean and boil the Cime di Rapa for 10 minutes in a separate pan with a teaspoon of salt.
    10 cime di rapa node
    Cime di Rapa
  • When done, drain them and put them in iced water to preserve their nice green colour.
    Cime di rapa

Prepare the mussels

  • In a frying pan, stir fry 1 sliced clove of garlic.
    1 clove peeled garlic cloves, 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • Put in the mussels and stir fry covered until they are all open.
    1 lb mussels
  • Stir from time to times
  • Add 1 cup of white wine and let it simmer for 1 minute until it evaporates
    1 cup dry white wine
  • When they are all open, remove the mussel but keep the water released by the mussels while cooking.
  • Strain the water through a paper cloth and let it rest so that any residual sand will fall at the bottom.
  • The water from the mussels is naturally salted and will be used instead of salt to season the Chayote mousse.
  • Clean the mussels and put them aside.

Creating a balanced flavour

  • Now mix the fish fumet, the water from the mussels and the Chayote to make the mousse. It is important to mix the right quantity to balance taste and consistency.
  • To start add ½ cup of mussels water and ⅓ of fish fumet to the Chayote and blend.
  • Taste and add more fish fumet or mussels water accordingly until you reach the desired taste and texture.
  • Pour the mousse in the serving bowl and add 4 mussels and 4 Cime di Rapa per plate to garnish.

Video

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Notes

Tips to make this Chayote squash recipe

Tips for the chayote

  • Chayote is just a zucchini squash with one big seed in the centre. You can substitute it with other zucchini but you may not get the same consistency of the mousse
  • The chayote has needles in their skin, make sure they have been removed before you touch them. They usually do this at the supermarket
  • You can easily grow chayote in a climate similar to the Mediterranean, but they need a lot of water
  • You can use chayote squash as a base for any no-carb soup you want to make!

Tips for the fish fumet

  • The difference between a general stock and a fumet is that the main ingredient is first roasted or stir-fried. The flavour of the fumet is more intense than a general stock, and in this recipe works perfectly.
  • If you want to take a short cut you can use fish stock.
  • To make the fumet you can buy a small fish, here I use gurnards. Don't worry about the fish bones, we will just use the stock, not the meat from the fish.
  • Keep strictly to the cooking time, seafood should never be overcooked as it will get tough and develop a bitter flavour.
  • You can make the fumet ahead of time and either keep in the fridge for 1 day or freeze it.

Tips for the mussels

  • Mussels can be a dangerous source of seafood poisoning if not chosen correctly.
  • Buy them only at your trusted fishmonger and ask them to clean them
  • Try to avoid them during the hot season
  • Fresh mussels should be cooked alive, once dead they will be infected.
Here is how to make sure fresh mussels are alive:
      • Fresh mussels should always be closed and cannot be open no matter how hard you try
      • Discharge any open or broken mussels
      • Rinse them under running water one by one and throw away any open or broken mussels
      • If they are open but when you touch them they close and will not open if you try, they are fine to eat.
  • Fresh mussels are naturally salted, you do not need to add any salt
  • When cooking the mussels, keep the pan covered and turn them every once in a while to make sure they will all open
  • Once open the mussels are cooked
  • Do not overcook the mussels, 2 to 3 minutes are enough. If some mussels are still not open remove the opened one and cook only the closed ones.
  • Any mussels that remain closed even after cooking it should be discharged
  • Remove any broken open mussels after you have cooked them, but do not worry if you find some once you finished cooking them. The rest of the mussels will not be infected.

Tips for putting it all together

  • The water from the mussels is naturally salted. Taste and add more fish fumet or mussels water accordingly until you reach your desired taste and texture

Nutrition

Calories: 185kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 16mg | Sodium: 208mg | Potassium: 515mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 245IU | Vitamin C: 19.6mg | Calcium: 49mg | Iron: 3.2mg
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Origin of this recipe

This recipe is from my uncle Nicola Zerbi

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Kate | Veggie Desserts

    October 28, 2017 at 7:22 am

    5 stars
    Gosh, cooking for Michelin starred chefs must haven scary and incredible! These recipes look amazing and thanks for the step by steps.

    Reply
    • Laura

      October 28, 2017 at 7:32 am

      thanks, it was stressful but a lot of fun too

      Reply
  2. Natalia

    October 28, 2017 at 10:00 am

    5 stars
    Love your recipe and how your explained the cooking process in detail. Now I know exactly how to make it and how to use Chayotes in my kitchen, which I never though of as courgettes before.

    Reply
    • Laura

      October 28, 2017 at 10:07 am

      That is a coincidence. Yes they don t look like a courgette but that is what they are

      Reply
  3. Julia

    October 28, 2017 at 12:44 pm

    Hmm, I have to say I have not come across a chayote squash here in Spain. Actually, I had never heard or seen it before but glad I learned something new today 🙂 This dish looks delicious!

    Reply
    • Laura

      October 28, 2017 at 1:13 pm

      You might want to check on the exotic vegetable section at the Supermarket. Also here in France, they display amonge exotic vegetables so they can sell them at a high price but they are actually grown locally. You might find it at lower prices in a local market.

      Reply
  4. Tina

    October 28, 2017 at 3:05 pm

    5 stars
    I am so glad I found this recipe. Chayote squash has been a mystery to me and have wanting to give this one a whirl. Perfect recipe, thanks!

    Reply
    • Laura

      October 28, 2017 at 3:31 pm

      I am glad I was able to inspire you. It is an unusual vegetable

      Reply
  5. Brandi

    October 28, 2017 at 3:25 pm

    5 stars
    I haven't had this before. Looks delicious and like something I should try.

    Reply
    • Laura

      October 28, 2017 at 3:32 pm

      It is an amazing vegetable, very easy to use

      Reply
  6. danielle de nice

    July 31, 2018 at 5:44 pm

    j'aimerai bien que la recette soit en français !! je ne comprends pas l'anglais!! merci de le faire!!!

    Reply
    • Laura

      July 31, 2018 at 6:12 pm

      Danielle, Merci pour votre commentaire. Beaucoup de mes lecteurs qui préfèrent lire dans d'autres langues utilisent l'option Chrome pour traduire la page et cela se fait automatiquement. J'espère que cela fonctionne pour vous

      Reply

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