How to Enjoy Kiwano Melon

Kiwano Melon is a melon native to the Kalahari Desert and is known by many other names such as Horned Melon, Melano, African Horned Cucumber, Jelly Melon, and Headged Gourd. Ripe Kiwano melons taste a combination of cucumber, kiwi and banana. So how to enjoy this interesting fruit? Here is the guide for you.

Table of Contents

Prepare Kiwano Melon

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Choose a fully ripe Kiwano melon. Ripe kiwano will have orange skin and spines. Squeeze gently to check the elasticity of the fruit and make sure it is not hard and green. For store-bought unripe Kiwano melons, you should wait for the fruit to turn orange before enjoying.

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Wash. Although the skin will be removed, you should wash the Kiwano berries before cutting them to avoid pesticides or other chemicals on the outside of the rind getting into them while cutting.

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Cut the fruit in half horizontally. Then set half aside. This is the best way to cut and enjoy Kiwano melon.

If you want to scoop out the seeds to use in other dishes or make a fruit salad, you should cut them lengthwise to make it easier to scoop. So, depending on the intended use, you can choose the appropriate cutting method.

Enjoy Your Own Kiwano Fruit

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Hold half of the fruit and place it at mouth level. Squeeze the melon from the bottom slowly but firmly. Each small green packet will contain a seed that is almost the same as the seed of a cucumber. When gently squeezed, the seeds will easily rise to the surface.

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Enjoy. Kiwano melon seeds can be eaten like pomegranate seeds, but the taste will be slightly bland. The best part to enjoy is the sweet green flesh around the seeds. You can take a small bite and then remove the seed and spit it out, or take a large bite and chew the whole seed.

If you don’t like to eat seeds, use your teeth to gently bite into the bag of seeds. Then, use the upper and lower teeth to suck the seed juice. Remember to bite to keep the seeds on the outside of the teeth and the juice in the mouth.

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Consider scooping out the seeds. If you like, you can also scoop Kiwano seeds into a bowl and use a spoon to enjoy. This way it will be easier to break apart the bags of green seeds and you won’t have to bury your face in the melon.

Using Kiwano Berries to Make Food

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Add Kiwano berries to fruit salads. Like kiwi fruit, Kiwano fruit can add beautiful color to salads and will be a surprise dish for diners. You just need to combine bananas, mangoes, melons and some Kiwano berries to create an eye-catching summer fruit salad. ^{[1] X Research Source}

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Use Kiwano melon to garnish barbecue. Have you prepared grilled steak or grilled ribs? So instead of sprinkling mushrooms or cheese, sprinkle some Kiwano seeds on the meat a few minutes before serving to create a unique highlight and slightly sour taste for the dish. ^{[2] X Research Source}

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Make Salsa Sauce with Kiwano Melon. Scoop the Kiwano seeds into a bowl and mix with:

The juice of a lemon
A clove of garlic
A handful of chopped coriander
Scallions or 1/8 of an onion
1/4 teaspoon fennel seeds
Toss with a small amount of vegetable oil to coat the mixture and use Salsa to garnish with meat, grilled vegetables or served with fries.

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Use Kiwano berries to garnish cocktails. Sprinkle a few kiwano seeds in a glass of champagne before pouring Mimosa red wine into the glass, or use to accent the Gin And Tonic cocktail in place of sliced lemon.

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Make the Intergalactic Nebula cocktail. First, scoop out the Kiwano seeds and put them in a cup. Then, pour red grape juice into ¾ cup. Next, scoop out the Kiwano seeds and add them to the cup. The seeds and juice will form beautiful layers. Stir well and enjoy.

Advice

You can use a straw to suck up the remaining seeds in the bowl.
Cut off the horns of the fruit if you find it difficult to hold. The distance between the spikes (horns) must be large to make it easier to hold the fruit.
The whole seed can be squeezed into a bowl to enjoy without worrying about the horny shell.
Seal and store uneaten Kiwano berries in the refrigerator.
Dry the pods and save them for cooking. Wrap the pods in paper towels. Remember to change the towel when it is damp to avoid causing the pods to become moldy.
Make sure the Kiwano berries are cold before cooking.

Warning

Although not dangerous, Kiwano thorns can be very sharp. Therefore, you should be careful when handling the fruit.

Things you need

Kiwano Melon
Knife
Bowl

Steps