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Bottle gourd (Calabash) nutrition facts

Bottle gourd or calabash is a delicately flavored, cucurbita family vegetable. It is one of the chief culinary vegetables in many tropical and temperate regions around the world.

Botanically, it belongs to the broad cucurbitaceae (gourd) family of vegetables; in the genus Lagenaria. Scientific name: Lagenaria siceraria (Molina) Standl. Some of common names are white-flower gourd, opo-squash, long squash, etc, in the west and doodhi or lauki in the Indian subcontinent.

calabash, bottle gourd

Bottle gourd. Note that round and pear shaped fruits are known as calabash in the west.

Bottle gourd is a fast growing, annual climber (vine) that requires adequate sun light for flowering and fruiting. It can be grown under wide range of soils and require trellis support for easy spread.

Its intensely branched stems bear musky, deep green, broad leaves just as that in pumpkin and white monoecious flowers in the summer. After about 75 days from the plantation, young, tender, edible fruits evolve that are ready for harvesting.

The fruit features oval, pear shaped or elongated, light-green and smooth surface. In case of round or pear calabash, the surface is marked by incospicuous ridges that run along its lengthwise. The fruits come in wide range of shapes and sizes. Internally, the flesh is white, spongy and embedded with soft, tiny seeds. As the fruits begin to mature, they gradually develop to bigger size similar as that in honeydew melons.

Health benefits of Bottle gourd

Bottle gourd is one of the least calorie vegetable providing just 14 calories per 100g. It is one of the vegetables recommended by the dieticians in weight-control programs.
Fresh gourds contain small quantities of folates, contain about 6 µg/100g (Provide just 1.5% of RDA). Folate helps reduce the incidence of neural tube defects in the newborns when taken by mothers during early pregnancy.
Fresh calabash-gourd is moderate source of vitamin-C (100 g of raw frit provides 10 mg or about 17% of RDA).Vitamin-C, one of the powerful natural antioxidants, helps the body scavenge deleterious free radicals one of the reasons for cancer development.
Calabash facilitates easy digestion and movement of food through the bowel until it is excreted from the body. Thus, helps in relieving indigestion and constipation problems.
In addition, the vegetable is also a moderate source of thiamin, niacin (vitamin B-3), pantothenic acid (vitamin B-5), pyridoxine (vitamin B-6) and minerals such as calcium, iron, zinc, potassium, manganese and magnesium.
Bottle gourd tender leaves and tendrils are also edible and indeed contain higher concentrations of vitamins and minerals than fruit.

Principle	Nutrient Value	Percentage of RDA
Energy	14 Kcal	<1%
Carbohydrates	3.39 g	2.5%
Protein	0.62 g	1%
Total Fat	0.02 g	0.5%
Cholesterol	0 mg	0%
Dietary Fiber	0.5 g	1%
Vitamins
Folates	6 µg	1.5%
Niacin	0.320 mg	2%
Pantothenic acid	0.152 mg	3%
Pyridoxine	0.040 mg	3%
Riboflavin	0.022 mg	2%
Thiamin	0.029 mg	2.5%
Vitamin A	16 IU	0.5%
Vitamin C	10.1 mg	17%
Electrolytes
Sodium	2 mg	<1%
Potassium	150 mg	3%
Minerals
Calcium	26 mg	2.6%
Copper	0.034 mg	4%
Iron	0.20 mg	2.5%
Magnesium	11 mg	3%
Manganese	0.089 mg	4%
Phosphorus	13 mg	2%
Selenium	0.2 mg	<1%
Zinc	0.70 mg	6.5%

See the table below for in depth analysis of nutrients:

Bottle gourd or Calabash (Lagenaria siceraria),

fresh, raw, Nutritive value per 100 g

(Source: USDA National Nutrient database)

Selection and storage

Bottle gourds are available around the season in the regions wherever suitable conditions for their growth exist. In the markets, look for fresh produce featuring tender, medium size, uniform, light green color fruit. Take a close look of its stem, which may offer a valuable hint whether the produce is fresh or aged.

Avoid those with oversize, mature, yellow-discoloration, cuts and bruise on their surface. Tiny spots on the surface, however, would not lessen their quality.

At home, store them inside the refrigerator set at adequate humidity where they stay fresh for 3-4 days.

Preparation and serving methods

bottle gourd cut sections

Bottle gourd cut sections. Note for ice-white, spongy flesh, and tiny, incospicuous seeds.

Bottle gourd is one of the most common vegetable in continuous use since ancient times. To prepare, wash the fruit in cold water and dry mop it using a soft cloth or paper towel. Trim the top end in case of round or pear shaped calabash and either ends in case of elongated bottle gourd. Peeling may not be required in case of tender fruits. Chop the produce into uniform desired chunks for even cooking.

Here are some serving tips:

Fresh calabash is used in variety of stews, curries, sweet recipes across the world. In the Indian subcontinent, popular as lauuki, it is used in the preparation of sabzi, sambar, chutney, raitha, etc.
In India and Pakistan, its flesh is used to prepare mouth-watering sweet dish; lauki ki halwa.
In Africa, where it is thought to have taken its origin, calabash is used in stews with meat, poultry, and seafood.
In India, bottle gourd juice is a popular drink for its known health benefits.

Safety profile

Some bottle gourds develop naturally occurring cucurbitacins in excess amounts under environmental adversities and accumulate terpenoid toxin compounds such as cucurbitacin B,D,G,H, etc.

Bottle gourd poisoning is a condition that occurs when a raw bitter bottle gourd consumed either directly or in the form of juice. Serious illness and deaths have been reported in India after consumption of bitter bottle gourd juice for its purported health benefits. Symptoms may include vomiting, stomachache, diarrhea occur within minutes of poisonous juice which may follow serious illness like bleeding from gut, shock and death.

ICMR (Indian Council of Medical Research) recommends the following guidelines for bottle gourd consumption for the public:

1. A small piece of bottle gourd should be tasted before extracting the juice to ensure that it is not bitter. If found bitter; the whole fruit should be discarded.

2. Bitter bottle gourd juice should not be consumed at all.

3. Bottle gourd juice should not to be mixed with any other juice.

4. In case of discomfort after consumption (nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or any feeling of uneasiness), the person should be immediately taken to any nearby hospital. (Medical disclaimer).