Snake Gourd

Also known asPadwal · Trichosanthes cucumerina · 蛇瓜

Name: Snake gourd (Trichosanthes cucumerina) — a very long, thin, pale green or white-striped gourd that grows hanging and often curls, sometimes reaching a metre in length, with soft, mildly bitter flesh. It is also called chichinda or padwal.

Description

Snake gourd is native to Southeast Asia, India and Australia, and is a common summer vegetable in South Asia, Southeast Asia and Africa. The young fruit is the edible part, cooked in curries, stir-fries and soups, and the young shoots and leaves are also eaten in some regions. Farmers sometimes hang a weight at the end of the gourd to keep it straight as it grows.

The flesh is soft, mild and slightly bitter, with a cucumber-like flavour, and the soft seeds in the middle are usually removed, along with the spongy pith. Mature gourds develop a bright red, sticky pulp.

Main nutrition value

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

How best to be consumed

Snake gourd is cooked while young.

1. Cut into pieces, scoop out the seeds and pith, and cook with onion, coconut and spices in a stir-fry, as in South Indian poriyal.
2. Add to dals, curries and soups.
3. Salt briefly to reduce bitterness.
4. Stuff and fry, or add to mixed vegetable dishes.
5. Choose young, tender, firm gourds, since mature ones are tough and bitter.

Overconsumption could cause…

Snake 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. Bitter, tough flesh in mature gourds.

GroupsSquash and GourdsGourd family (Cucurbitaceae)IndianFresh

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

Wikipedia — Trichosanthes cucumerina, used for origin, naming and history: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trichosanthes_cucumerina