Strange fruit

So the time came tonight to harvest and eat my single kiwano, or horned cucumber. I duly picked it ... carefully (it should be called "bloody sharp-spiked cucumber if you ask me), sliced it in half, sprinked on salt and lemon juice on it, and scooped the flesh into my expectant mouth.

The flavour? Well, I can only really describe it as ... cucumbery. It's been an interesting plant to grow and I am pleased to have managed to produce a fruit, expecially when it is meant to be grown under glass rather than being left exposed to the elements of an English allotment. However I am not sure I'd repeat the process next year: my partner hates cucumber (his response when presented with the cut fruit? "yeuch, that cucumber smell makes me want to retch!") and these horny little fruits just aren't as versatile as the long green variety I am more familiar with. I can see why it's the cucumber of choice in Africa though: the spikes must put off goats and the like from taking a bite, and the crisp flesh must be very refreshing in the midday heat. It just doesn't work so well in the leaden October skies of the home counties, though ...


THe kiwano in situ and in the kitchen ready to be devoured ...

Comments

[flick]

I ran into your site doing a search on "Horned Cucumber," hoping to find some recipes.

I grew Horned Cucumbers this year in the South US. I guess because of your short growing season, your cucumber didn't get ripe. They're bright orange when ripe. Then the inside is a shocking lime green and jelly-like.

I don't care for them. The seeds are numerous and rather bitter, and the flesh is not very tasty. They sure are pretty, though.

They require a long growing season, I found. I planted them early enough this year, in March, and got about 20 vines which grew 20-25 feet long. I must have 100+ horned cukes out there, some ripe, some still green, and the vines are still flowering!

The growth of the vines is rampant; the plant would make a nice quick-growing privacy screen over a fence - a strong fence. So many fruits, my fence is sagging.

Since I don't like them, I've been cutting them up and feeding them to my chickens. I intend to try one at the stage you did, still green, and see if it's more cuke-like. Maybe with a nice vinaigrette (?).

I'm also wondering if they could be used like zucchini when they're unripe, cut in half and breaded and baked.