DescriptionLong Loki Qadu-PakistanBottle 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, calabash belongs to the broader Cucurbitaceae (gourd) family of plants, in the genus: Lagenaria. Scientific name: Lagenaria siceraria (Molina) Standl. Some of the common names are white-flower gourd, upo-squash (Filipino), long-squash, etc., in the west and doodhi or lauki in the Indian subcontinent.Bottle gourd is a fast growing, annual climber (vine) that requires adequate sunlight for flowering and fruiting. It can be grown in a wide range of soils and need trellis support for a spread.Its intensely branched stems bear musky, deep green, broad leaves just similar as that in pumpkins, and white, monoecious flowers in the summer. After about 75 days from the plantation, young, tender, edible fruits evolve that will be ready for harvesting.Health benefits:-Bottle gourd is one of the lowest calorie vegetables- carrying just 14 calories per 100 g. 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 anticipant mothers during their early months of pregnancy.-Fresh calabash gourd is a modest source of vitamin-C (100 g of raw fruit provides 10 mg or about 17% of RDA). Vitamin-C is one of the powerful natural antioxidants that help the human body scavenge harmful free radicals, which otherwise, labeled as 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, it helps in relieving indigestion and constipation problems.-Aslo, the vegetable is also a modest 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 its fruit.Nutrition Information:PrincipleNutrient ValuePercentage of RDAEnergy14 Kcal<1�rbohydrates3.39 g2.5%Protein0.62 g1%Total Fat0.02 g0.5%Dietary Fiber0.5 g1%Related
