Parwal

Trichosanthes dioica · Parval · potol · pointed gourd

A vegetable that gets hollowed out and filled with khoya.

What it is

Parwal is a small gourd about the length of a thumb, tapering to a blunt point at both ends, its skin a soft green striped paler along the length. The flesh is firm and mild with soft seeds when young; older fruit turns coarse and the seeds harden. It holds its shape through long cooking, which is what makes it useful.

Where it comes from

The eastern Gangetic plain — Bihar, eastern Uttar Pradesh and Bengal — where it is a summer and monsoon staple and grows on a vine trained over frames. It is one of the few vegetables of the region that crosses without change into Bengali cooking, where it is potol.

What it's called

Parwal · parval · potol (Bengali) · pointed gourd. Sometimes sold as green potato, which describes nothing about it.

In the kitchen

Savoury, it is fried in mustard oil, stuffed with spiced mash, or cooked into a light curry. Sweet, it is scraped, hollowed, simmered in syrup until the flesh candies and turns translucent, then filled with khoya — a preparation that startles people who know it only as a vegetable.

What we know about the claims

Low in calories and traditionally regarded as easy on the stomach. Nothing beyond that stands up.

Choosing and buying

Fresh in UK and US South Asian grocers through the warmer months, frozen year-round. Choose small firm ones with tight skin; a large soft parwal has woody seeds and will not do for the sweet.