Ridge Gourd

Also known asAngled Luffa · Luffa acutangula · 角瓜

Name: Ridge gourd, also called angled loofah, Chinese okra, turai or jhinga (Luffa acutangula) — a long, dark green, club-shaped gourd with sharp, raised ridges running along its length, and soft, spongy, mild flesh, a relative of the sponge gourd.

Description

Ridge gourd is native to India and has been cultivated in South and Southeast Asia, China and Africa for thousands of years. It is a staple summer vegetable in Indian, Bangladeshi and Southeast Asian cooking, where it is used in curries, chutneys, soups and stir-fries.

The young gourds are tender, with a mildly sweet, slightly spongy flesh that absorbs spices well. The hard ridges are usually peeled off with a knife or peeler, and older gourds become bitter and fibrous, turning into loofah sponges.

Main nutrition value

Ridge gourd is very low in calories, with a high water content, and provides vitamin C, vitamin A, fibre and small amounts of iron and magnesium.

How best to be consumed

Ridge gourd is cooked while young and tender.

1. Peel the ridges with a vegetable peeler, then slice into rounds, and cook with onion, tomato and spices.
2. Stir-fry with eggs, or add to dals, curries and soups.
3. Make into chutney, by cooking the peels with coconut, as in South Indian cooking.
4. Choose small, young, firm gourds, and discard any that are bitter or very fibrous.
5. Cook soon after buying, since it spoils quickly.

Overconsumption could cause…

Ridge gourd is safe in food amounts when young and mild.

1. Toxic squash syndrome from cucurbitacins, natural compounds that make a squash or gourd intensely bitter, and which can cause severe stomach upset, hair loss and even death in rare cases, so always taste a little raw and discard the whole fruit if it is very bitter.
2. Digestive upset, such as loose stools, from large amounts.
3. Possible lowering of blood sugar in large amounts, so people on diabetes medicines should check with a doctor.
4. Tough, fibrous texture in mature gourds.

GroupsSquash and GourdsGourd family (Cucurbitaceae)IndianFresh

Related foodsBitter Gourd / Bitter MelonBottle GourdIvy Gourd / TindoraPointed Gourd / ParwalSnake GourdSponge Gourd / Luffa

Wikipedia — Luffa acutangula, used for origin, naming and history: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luffa_acutangula