With a pre-disposition to heart disease (thanks to my family!), I have decided to grow my own bottle gourds in my (under construction) vegetable garden. I am sure you know about bottle gourds, but just in case you don't...Found in every kitchen of the Indian household, the bottle gourd is believed to have originated in Africa constitutes a major part of food in the Indian cuisine. Like it or not, this gourd has dominated the domestic main course menu for time immemorial. Locally known as “Lauki” (Hindi) or “Sorakkai” (Tamil), this veggie is not that popular in the western world. Why is not popular in the Western world you ask? Because there is no commercial market for it? Because it tastes hairspray? No, it is because in our world of commercial grade costco :( vegetable platters with more pesticides on them than a ten year old going on his first boy scout overnight in a mosquito infested river area (and such boy has helicopter parents that bought so much deet-filled "Off" that they could have moved the stock up a few points of the evil parent company of said "Off" (and I sure a parent company exists!). What I mean is that in this world, we have chosen not to grow bottle gourds. Hence we don't eat bottle gourds.
Bottle Gourds have an enormous impact on the treatment of high blood pressure and heart disease. The myriad of health benefits of bottle gourd is least known to many, yet unknowingly it is consumed in majority of the Indian families because of the low price tag it carries in the vegetable market and its wide availability. That is, the INDIAN vegetable market. Not our market which is manipulated and controlled by the upper 1% of the 2% of the wealthiest. (I am not a socialist, but I do believe that we should all have access to helping our bodies with bottle gourds).
