Formulation and Shelf Life Studies of Value Added Products from Sechiumedule – An Underutilized Vegetable from North East India

Abstract

Sechium edule is a vegetable crop belonging to Cucurbitaceae family which still remains underutilized. The crop is grown widely in the North-Eastern states of India and it is a popularly kitchen garden vegetable in this region. The crop requires minimum agronomic inputs and all the parts of the crop are used in various ways. The fruits are consumed popularly as fresh vegetable, roots are used as an alternative source of starch and even the fresh young shoots are used as vegetables (Singh et al., 2002). It is known by various names in different languages viz: Chayote (in Mexico/Latin America), Chow – Chow, Isqush (Nepali Language), Piskut (Khasi language) and Sikut (Garolanguage), Squash (English) (Lokesh et al., 2017). The plant is a native of Mexico, but the NorthEastern part of India has considerable diversity of Sechium edule particularly in the states of Mizoram, Meghalaya and Sikkim (Rai et al., 2006). International Journal of Current Microbiology and Applied Sciences ISSN: 2319-7706 Volume 8 Number 07 (2019) Journal homepage: http://www.ijcmas.com