Kiwano Seeds

Kiwano is a trailing annual vine in the cucumber and melon genus. Its oval fruit is about 10 to 15 cm long, ripening from green to bright orange with a skin covered in thick, blunt spikes. Inside, a vivid green, jelly-like pulp surrounds numerous flat, pale, oval seeds, rather like a cucumber seed but softer. The seeds are soft enough to swallow along with the pulp. The flavour of the pulp is refreshing and tart, often compared to a mix of cucumber, lime and banana. The seeds are most commonly experienced inside the fresh fruit, and are also collected and dried for planting. Fruit keeps for several months at room temperature, and is sold in supermarkets as a novelty fruit.

Cucumis metuliferus is native to the semi-arid regions of sub-Saharan Africa, particularly the Kalahari and other dry savannas of southern Africa, where it grows as a wild or semi-wild plant. The name kiwano was adopted commercially in New Zealand in the 1980s, probably as a play on kiwi, while the botanical epithet metuliferus means bearing spikes. The plant has been valued by local people for its fruit, and as a source of drought-tolerant genetic material, and it is resistant to some root-knot nematodes, which interests plant breeders working on melon and cucumber.

Indigenous communities across southern Africa have long used the wild fruit as a source of water and food during dry seasons. Early European botanists recorded the plant in the nineteenth century. In the twentieth century, the fruit began to be cultivated commercially in New Zealand, and the name kiwano was introduced for marketing. Production followed in California, Chile, Israel, Kenya and other warm regions, and the fruit gained visibility in the 1990s as a decorative exotic garnish and in fruit salads and cocktails. It also became popular with chefs for its striking appearance. Research interest has focused on the plant's resistance to pests, such as nematodes and some viruses, which can be used in breeding cucumbers and melons. In rural Africa the plant continues to be harvested locally, with leaves and fruits both used. It remains a niche crop, but one with growing recognition as a useful dryland species.

The jelly and seeds are scooped out and eaten fresh, added to fruit salads, smoothies, sorbets and cocktails, or used to top desserts and savoury dishes. The pulp can be strained for juice, though most people eat the seeds along with it. The empty rind is sometimes used as a serving bowl. In traditional African use, young fruits may be cooked, and leaves eaten as greens in some regions. The ripe fruit is also used decoratively, as it keeps well. Gardeners grow it from seed in warm climates.

Kiwano pulp provides water, vitamin C, some vitamin A precursors, potassium and magnesium, though in modest amounts for the typical serving size. The seeds contribute a small amount of fibre and fat. Research on the fruit's specific health effects is very limited, so claims for it should be treated cautiously, but it can be part of a varied fruit-and-vegetable intake.