Legendary chefs like Alice Waters and Wolfgang Puck have been extolling the quality and variety of Chino Farm’s produce for decades, and from the first time I visited last year I knew why. The humble wooden farm stand is overflowing with deliciousness, and the friendly workers — young and old — eagerly proffer samples of ingredients they just harvested that morning. They’ll explain how mara de bois French strawberries differ from the California kind, and recommend items for your favorite recipes — in my case, the best microgreens for avocado toast.
I always learn something new when I visit Chino Farm. I try to go every two weeks, depending on my travel schedule, and it’s so much fun discovering new varieties of fruits and veggies that I could never find in a grocery store. Strawberries, corn, and tomatoes reign supreme in summer — but come autumn, kabocha squash has my heart.
What’s So Great About Chino Farm’s Kabocha Squash?
I didn’t know multiple varieties of kabocha squash even existed until I saw three different kinds at The Vegetable Shop at Chino Farm: Winter Sweet, with its light gray exterior, is a little starchier and has a really nutty flavor; Sunshine is bright orange and the sweetest of the varieties; and Cha-Cha squash are green with stripes, resembling an underripe pumpkin at first glance, belying the sweet, flaky golden orange inside.
The flavor in Chino Farm’s squash, and really all of its produce, is just so much more intense than the standard grocery store variety. The kabocha, acorn, and butternut squash I find in grocery stores taste like grayscale by comparison.
Their thick skin holds up nicely on the two-hour drive back to Los Angeles, and they’re smaller than pumpkins, so they serve as festive autumn decor on the kitchen counter before it’s time to be devoured. They’re always growing new varieties too, like Row 7 Seed Co’s koginut squash. (I’m looking forward to trying some on my next visit.)
What’s the Best Way to Use Chino Farm’s Kabocha Squash?
I am by no means a skilled cook, but kabocha squash is so easy to cook, and versatile in both sweet and savory dishes. Just roast it whole in the oven on a baking sheet at 350°F for 90 minutes or so, and you get honeyed, chestnutty flesh that is as brilliant orange as the changing fall leaves. Roasted kabocha squash is perfect for meal prep — use it in grain bowls, salads, a rich fall soup, or pasta filling.
You can also cut kabocha into wedges and season with spices and olive oil for a quintessential autumn side dish. I love dukkah for a savory crunch to contrast with kabocha’s sweet, creamy flesh. Scoop out the seeds to roast them separately as well with salt and olive oil for a crunchy snack. This year, I also want to try baking kabocha squash bread or cookies.
The Vegetable Shop at Chino Farm is open to the public Wednesday through Sunday. It currently doesn’t offer delivery, so you may run into acclaimed chefs like Cameron Ingle from glamorous La Jolla hotspot Marisi and Carl Schroeder from long-standing local favorite Market visiting the farm to pick out ingredients for their restaurants.
What groceries are you going to great lengths to get? Tell us about it in the comments below.