Parvar (Pointed Gourd)

Also Known As : parwal (Hindi), (Gujarati), kambupudalai (Tamil), potals (Telugu), potol (Bengali), potala (Odisa), paror (Maithili)

Technical Name : Trichosanthes dioica

Descriptions
details

Vegetarian

Taste Profile

It has bland flavor and becomes tasteless as it matures

Usage Tips

It is used as an ingredient for soups, stews, and curries.
It can be eaten fried and as potoler dorma or dolma (dolma) with fish, roe or meat stuffing.
Pointed gourd is cooked with potatoes, and served with yogurt or in a vegetable dish known as subzis in West Indies.
It can also be pickled in vinegar with an assortment of herbs and spices.
To store pointed gourd, wash and dry them gently and put them in bags and place it in the refrigerator.

Common names and forms

Parawal

Description

Pointed gourds are oblong, and smooth, 2 to 6 inches (5 to 15 cm) long glabrous, orange-red, and pointed at both ends. They are green with white or no stripes. They are yellowish-green color when young turning to burnt orange color as they mature. It can be grouped into 4 main varieties: Long, dark green with white stripes, thick and dark green with very pale green stripes, round and dark green with white stripes and tapering, green with stripes. Pointed gourd is a vegetable which is native to the Indo-Malayan region. It is widely cultivated in the eastern and some northern parts of India, particularly in North eastern Andhra, Odisha, Bengal, Assam, Bihar, and Uttar Pradesh.

Health benefits

Pointed gourd is beneficial for the purification of blood. According to Ayurveda, it can regulate the Kapha which helps to clean the blood and tissues. ⁽¹⁾
It has the capacity to boost immunity and is used as a medicine to treat flu, throat problems, and high temperatures. ⁽¹⁾
Being rich in fiber it helps for proper digestion. It also helps to solve gastrointestinal and other problems of the liver. ⁽¹⁾
Seeds present in the parwal vegetables help to ease stool and is recommended to reduce constipation problem. Having pointed gourd on a regular basis helps to get rid of constipation. ⁽²⁾
It helps to control blood sugar levels, which in turn lower the cholesterol in the body. It is considered the best food for diabetic patients. ⁽²⁾

Selection Guide

Choose bright green colored pointed gourd as they are young. Don't choose mature pointed gourds as they have less flavor

Resource & Links

(1) https://www.msn.com/en-in/health/familyhealth/health-benefits-of-pointed-gourd-this-is-how-it-aids-in-weight-loss/ar-BBZ48NL

(2) https://www.healthbenefitstimes.com/health-benefits-of-pointed-gourd-parwal/

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