Stuffed Mirlitons and More New Orleans Recipes
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What is a Mirliton?
What is it?
In New Orleans, you can't have Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner without at least one dish containing mirlitons. If you aren't from south Louisiana you may wonder, "what in the world are mirlitons?" If you are a musician, then images of musical instruments probably pop into your head, but you'd be wrong. Mirliton (in N'Awlinese pronounced MEL-a-tahn, DAHlin') is the name of a type of fleshy, mild tasting tropical squash-like fruit that is a member of the cucumber family. Other names for this pear shaped delight are vegetable pear, chayote and mango squash. Mirliton vines crawl all over backyards in New Orleans and other parts of South Louisiana and are relatively easy to grow if you have the right place, a good amount of rain and the summer is not too hot. The mirliton vine sets flowers in September and begins bearing fruit in October, if the weather cooperates. 
Dottie's Stuffed Mirlitons Recipe
Dottie's Stuffed Mirlitons
4 mirlitons
1 to 1 1/4 cup soft Italian breadcrumbs
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons butter
1/2 pound shrimp (or ham or ground meat) coarsely chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt
a Dash of black pepper
1 teaspoon chopped parsley
1 sprig thyme
1/8 cup buttered bread crumbs
Simmer mirlitons in salted water until tender, about 1 to 1 1/4 hours. Remove, drain and reserve about 1 cup of the water. Cut the mirlitons in half; remove the seeds and carefully spoon out the pulp. (Dottie just put her stuffing into a casserole dish, but many people stuff the mirliton shells.) Set the shells aside if you want to stuff them.
Chop pulp and add bread crumbs. Saute onions, garlic and shrimp or meat of your choice in butter over medium heat until tender, about 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in pulp mixture, salt and pepper; continue cooking for 5 minutes, stirring frequently. (If it is too dry, add a little of the reserved mirliton boiling water.) Cool a little and add parsley and thyme and mix thoroughly.
Fill vegetable shells or shallow casserole dish with pulp mixture and sprinkle tops with buttered crumbs. Bake in 375 degree F oven for 25 minutes. Serves 8.
Variation: Add 1/4 cup of grated Parmesan cheese with the parsley and thyme mixture and sprinkle a little Parmesan on top with the buttered breadcrumbs.
There are several types of mirlitons, ranging...
- from smooth to deeply wrinkled
- from non-prickly to prickly skin
- from round to a flattened pear shape
More Recipes
1 1/2 cups cooked, mashed mirliton, drained
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 cup evaporated milk
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon flour
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup raisins
1/4 cup chopped pecans.
Combine mirliton, brown sugar, eggs, vanilla and spices. Stir in milk, sugar, flour and butter. Add raisins and pecans. Pour into buttered 1 1/2 quart casserole. Bake in 350 degree F oven for one hour or until mixture is set. Serves 6.
Pan-Fried Mirliton2 pounds mirliton
1 small onion, minced
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon salt
Peel and cube mirliton. Saute with onion in sizzling butter over low heat until tender, about 20 minutes. Do not add water. Season with salt and pepper. Serves 4.
Scalloped Mirlitons
2 cups thinly sliced mirlitons
1 cup chopped onions or 12 tiny onions
3 minced green peppers
1 1/2 cups white sauce
1 cup fine dry bread crumbs
1 tablespoon butter
In 1 1/2 quart casserole, layer mirlitons, onion, green peppers and white sauce. Cover with crumbs, dot with butter. Bake in 350 degree F oven for 20 minutes. Serves 4.
White Sauce: Melt 3 tablespoons butter over low heat; blend in 3 tablespoons flour and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Gradually add 1 1/4 cups milk, stirring constantly. Cook until thick and smooth. Makes 1 1/2 cups.
Yummy Mirliton Photos
Mirlitons (alligator pears) at a produce stand on Perkins Road in Baton Rouge, L...
Home for the Holidays Contest in the Holiday Cooking category, December, 2008. Size...
can range anywhere from a few ounces to more than two pounds.
Growing Mirlitons
The vegetable pear will grow in any section of the state (Louisiana). It is a perennial and will renew its growth from the roots each year if protected from freezing. It requires a well-drained, highly fertile soil with lots of organic matter. In ideal growing conditions, a single vine in the yard or garden will produce more than enough fruit for the average family. The plants require days in which the number of hours of daylight are 12 or more to begin blooming and setting fruit. Normally, fruiting begins in September and continues until frost. Occasionally in the spring, if the plant makes enough vegetative growth by May, a few fruit will set and develop a late spring crop. The main crop is produced in the fall.
Mirlitons are easy to plant. All you have to do is lay one of the fruits down on its side and cover it with dirt. The plant comes out of the fat end from a single "seed" that is inside. We start ours in the greenhouse during winter and then plant them out when all danger of frost has past. They will even start sprouting vines while they are inside the house, sitting on the counter. You can plant these, too.
more from Growing Vegetable Pears by the LSU AgCenter
"A single vine may produce as many as 100 one-pound mirlitons."
Mirlitons from Wikipedia
The chayote (Sechium edule), also known as sayote, tayota, choko, chocho, chow-chow, christophene, mirliton, and vegetable pear, is an edible plant that belongs to the gourd family Cucurbitaceae along with melons, cucumbers and squash.
The plant has large leaves that form a canopy over the fruit. The vine is grown on the ground or more commonly on trellises.
Costa Rica is a major exporter of Chayotes worldwide. Costa Rican chayotes can be purchased in the European Union, the United States and other places in the world.
Chayote is a very important ingredient in the Central American diet. In Mexico, Veracruz state is the most important Chayote growing area, and is also a major exporter of this product, mainly to the United States.
Mirliton Blog Posts
- Pickled Mirlitons Recipe - Fast and Delicious Recipes
- Pickled Mirlitons Recipe: Cut the mirlitons in half lengthwise. Remove the seeds. Cut each half lengthwise into slices about 1/2-inch thick. Put the mirlitons, carrots, onions, and garlic in a large bowl. Cover with ice and cold water.
- Stuffed Mirlitons
- When cool enough to handle, cut mirlitons lengthwise in half. Remove seeds. Scoop out pulp to within 1/2 inch of skin. Set shells aside. Chop pulp. Drain. Squeeze pulp between paper towels to remove excess liquid. Set aside. ...
- CrabAppleLane mirlitons - May 24, 2009
- CrabAppleLane Rob posted a photo: CrabAppleLane mirlitons - May 24, 2009.
- Mirliton Pickles Recipe - Fast and Delicious Recipes
- Mirliton Pickles Recipe: In a pint jar, pack mirlitons which have been washed and sliced from top to necessary with young ones. With the mirlitons put in all the ingredients, except the water and vinegar. Pour water and vinegar over ...
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Mirlitons Anyone?
New Orleans Mirliton Festival
New Orleans is so crazy about mirlitons that there is a festival each year sponsored by the The Bywater Neighborhood Association in association with The Bywater Art Market. Food, Fun, Music and Art, what a great combination!
2006 poster courtesy of Bywater Neighborhood Association
Plan Your Trip to the Festival
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Leave us a note.
naturegirl7 wrote...
in reply to dannystaple
Mirlitons are easy to grow. When there are no more frosts, you can lay one (that you get from the market) down on its side and cover it with dirt. The plant will grow out of the big end sort of like a potato. The whole thing is a seed! We start them in pots in the greenhouse in winter, then transplant them to the garden in spring.
Posted April 15, 2009
dannystaple wrote...
Hi there,
Thanks for adding this to the All about growing food group. I had never heard of the Mirliton although I think I may have seen it in a local world food grocery - not sure how I could find the seeds for it here in the UK either. How about adding a module with links to buy seeds? Good revenue for you too if you find the right way.
Posted April 15, 2009
LauraFincannon wrote...
What a fabulous page. I was referred here by SusannaDuffy who thought you'd make a wonderful addition to our brand new New Orleans Group. Please join us!
http://www.squidoo.com/groups/NewOrleans
Posted April 04, 2009
BusyQueen wrote...
Thanks for sharing your knowledge. It's well done. 5 *****'s
Posted February 12, 2009
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