Kabocha (; from

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

, ) is a type of

winter squash Winter squash is an annual fruit representing several squash species within the genus '' Cucurbita''. Late-growing, less symmetrical, odd-shaped, rough or warty varieties, small to medium in size, but with long-keeping qualities and hard rinds, ...

, a Japanese variety of the species ''

Cucurbita maxima ''Cucurbita maxima'', one of at least five species of cultivated Squash (plant), squash, is one of the most diverse domesticated species. This species originated in South America from the wild subspecies ''Cucurbita maxima subsp. andreana'' over ...

.'' It is also called kabocha squash or Japanese pumpkin in North America. In Japan, "''kabocha''" may refer to either this squash, to the Western

pumpkin A pumpkin is a cultivar, cultivated winter squash in the genus ''Cucurbita''. The term is most commonly applied to round, orange-colored squash varieties, but does not possess a scientific definition. It may be used in reference to many dif ...

, or indeed to other squashes. In Australia, "Japanese pumpkin" is a synonym of Kent pumpkin, a variety of

(''C. moschata''). Many of the kabocha in the market are ''kuri kabocha'', a type created from ''seiyo kabocha'' (

buttercup squash ''Cucurbita maxima'', one of at least five species of cultivated squash, is one of the most diverse domesticated species. This species originated in South America from the wild subspecies ''Cucurbita maxima subsp. andreana'' over 4,000 years ago ...

). Varieties of kabocha include Ajihei, Ajihei No. 107, Ajihei No. 331, Ajihei No. 335, Ebisu, Emiguri, Marron d'Or and Miyako.

Description

Kabocha is hard on the outside with knobbly-looking skin. It is shaped like a squat pumpkin and has a dull-finished, deep-green skin with some celadon-to-white stripes and an intense yellow-orange color on the inside. In many respects it is similar to

, but without the characteristic protruding "cup" on the blossom (bottom) end. An average kabocha weighs two to three pounds, but a large squash can weigh as much as eight pounds.

Culinary use

Kabocha has an exceptionally sweet flavor, even sweeter than

butternut squash Butternut squash (a variety of ''Cucurbita moschata''), known in Australia and New Zealand as butternut pumpkin or gramma, is a type of winter squash that grows on a vine. It has a Sweetness, sweet, Nut (fruit), nutty taste similar to that of a ...

. It is similar in texture and flavor to a

and

sweet potato The sweet potato or sweetpotato (''Ipomoea batatas'') is a dicotyledonous plant in the morning glory family, Convolvulaceae. Its sizeable, starchy, sweet-tasting tuberous roots are used as a root vegetable, which is a staple food in parts of ...

combined. Some kabocha can taste like

Russet potato A russet potato is a type of potato that is large, with dark brown skin and few eyes. The flesh is white, dry, soft, and mealy, and it is suitable for baking, mashing, and french fries. Russet potatoes are sometimes known as Idaho potatoes in the ...

es or

chestnut The chestnuts are the deciduous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Castanea'', in the beech family Fagaceae. The name also refers to the edible nuts they produce. They are native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. Description ...

s. The rind is edible although some cooks may peel it to speed up the cooking process or to suit their personal taste preferences. Kabocha is commonly utilized in side dishes and soups, or as a substitute for potato or other squash varieties. It can be roasted after cutting the squash in half, scooping out the seeds, and then cutting the squash into wedges. With a little cooking oil and seasoning, it can be baked in the oven. Likewise, cut Kabocha halves can be added to a pressure cooker and steamed under high pressure for 15–20 minutes. One can slowly bake Kabocha whole and uncut in a convection oven, after which the entire squash becomes soft and edible, including the rind. Kabocha is available all year but is best in late summer and early fall. Kabocha is primarily grown in Japan, South Korea, Thailand, California, Florida, Hawaii, Southwestern Colorado, Mexico,

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

Tonga Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania. The country has 171 islands, of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in the southern Pacific Ocean. accordin ...

, New Zealand, Chile, Jamaica, and South Africa, but is widely adapted for climates that provide a growing season of 100 days or more. Most of the kabocha grown in California, Colorado, Tonga and New Zealand is actually exported to Japan.

Japan

In Japan, kabocha is a common ingredient in vegetable

tempura is a typical Japanese dish that usually consists of seafood and vegetables that have been coated in a thin batter and deep-fried. Tempura originated in the 16th century, when Portuguese Jesuits brought the Western-style cooking method of ...

and is also made into soup and croquettes. Less traditional but popular usages include its incorporation in desserts such as pies, pudding, and ice cream. Nimono of japanese pumpkin 2014.jpg, Nimono of kabocha, part of

Japanese cuisine Japanese cuisine encompasses the regional and traditional foods of Japan, which have developed through centuries of political, economic, and social changes. The traditional cuisine of Japan (Japanese language, Japanese: ) is based on rice with m ...

Tempura.JPG, Shown on the right, kabocha is a common ingredient in

Korea

In Korea, ''danhobak'' () is commonly used for making ''

hobak-juk ''Hobak-juk'' () or pumpkin porridge, is a variety of Korean porridge, or ''juk'', made with pumpkin and glutinous rice flour. * Recovering patients or the elderly traditionally receive this smooth and naturally sweet porridge. Preparation Pu ...

'' (pumpkin porridge). ''Danhobak'' literally means 'sweet pumpkin'. Danhobak-buchimgae 2.jpg, ''Danhobak-

buchimgae ''Buchimgae'' (), or Korean pancake, refers broadly to any type of pan-fried ingredients soaked in egg or a batter mixed with other ingredients. More specifically, it is a dish made by pan-frying a thick batter mixed with egg and other ingred ...

'' (kabocha pancake) Danhobak-jjim 2.jpg, ''Danhobak-

jjim ''Jjim'' (; ) is a Korean cuisine term referring to dishes made by steaming or boiling meat, chicken, fish, or shellfish which have been marinated in a sauce or soup. The cooking technique originally referred to dishes cooked in a '' siru'' ( ...

'' (steamed kabocha) topped with

red bean Red bean is a common name for several varieties of beans and plants and may refer to: * ''Small red beans'', also known as "Mexican red beans," "Central American red beans," and "New Orleans red beans" * Adzuki bean (''Vigna angularis''), commonly ...

s and

jujube Jujube (UK ; US or ), sometimes jujuba, scientific name ''Ziziphus jujuba'', and also called red date, Chinese date, and Chinese jujube, is a species in the genus '' Ziziphus'' in the buckthorn family Rhamnaceae. It is often confused wit ...

Danhobak-juk.jpg, ''Danhobak-

juk Juk or JUK may refer to: * JuK, software * Juk (food), Korean rice porridge * Juk language, a Mon–Khmer language spoken in Laos * Ukkusissat Heliport (IATA: JUK), in Greenland * Wapan language (ISO 639-3: juk), a Jukunoid language of Nigeria {{ ...

'' (kabocha porridge) Danhobak salad (kabocha squash salad).jpg, ''Danhobak''-salad (kabocha salad) Danhobak-sanyak-yanggaeng.jpg, ''Danhobak- sanyak- yanggaeng'' (kabocha and yam jelly) Danhobak latte.jpg, ''Danhobak''-

latte Latte () or caffè latte (), also known as , or , is a List of coffee drinks, coffee drink of Italian cuisine, Italian origin made with espresso and steamed milk, traditionally served in a glass. Variants include the chocolate-flavored ''caf ...

(kabocha latte)

Thailand

''Fak thong'' (Thai: ฟักทอง) is used in traditional Thai desserts and main courses. Kabocha is used in Jamaican chicken foot soup.

Nutrition

This squash is rich in

beta carotene Beta (, ; uppercase , lowercase , or cursive ; or ) is the second letter of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals, it has a value of 2. In Ancient Greek, beta represented the voiced bilabial plosive . In Modern Greek, it represe ...

, with

iron Iron is a chemical element; it has symbol Fe () and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, forming much of Earth's o ...

vitamin C Vitamin C (also known as ascorbic acid and ascorbate) is a water-soluble vitamin found in citrus and other fruits, berries and vegetables. It is also a generic prescription medication and in some countries is sold as a non-prescription di ...

potassium Potassium is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol K (from Neo-Latin ) and atomic number19. It is a silvery white metal that is soft enough to easily cut with a knife. Potassium metal reacts rapidly with atmospheric oxygen to ...

, and smaller traces of

calcium Calcium is a chemical element; it has symbol Ca and atomic number 20. As an alkaline earth metal, calcium is a reactive metal that forms a dark oxide-nitride layer when exposed to air. Its physical and chemical properties are most similar to it ...

folic acid Folate, also known as vitamin B9 and folacin, is one of the B vitamins. Manufactured folic acid, which is converted into folate by the body, is used as a dietary supplement and in food fortification as it is more stable during processing and ...

, and minute amounts of

B vitamins B vitamins are a class of water-soluble vitamins that play important roles in Cell (biology), cell metabolism and synthesis of red blood cells. They are a chemically diverse class of compounds. Dietary supplements containing all eight are referr ...

Ripeness

When kabocha is just harvested, it is still growing. Therefore, unlike other vegetables and fruits, freshness is not as important. It should be ''fully matured'' first, in order to become flavorful, by first ripening the kabocha in a warm place (77 °F/25 °C) for 13 days to convert some of the starch to sugar. Then the kabocha is transferred to a cool place (50 °F/10 °C) and stored for about a month in order to increase carbohydrate content. In this way the just-harvested, dry, bland-tasting kabocha is transformed into a smooth, sweet kabocha. Fully ripened, succulent kabocha will have reddish-yellow flesh, a hard skin, and a dry, corky stem. It reaches the peak of ripeness about 1.5–3 months after it is harvested.

History

All

squashes Squash most often refers to: * Squash (sport), the high-speed racquet sport also known as squash racquets * Squash (plant), the fruit of vines of the genus ''Cucurbita'' Squash may also refer to: Sports * Squash (professional wrestling), an extr ...

were domesticated in

Mesoamerica Mesoamerica is a historical region and cultural area that begins in the southern part of North America and extends to the Pacific coast of Central America, thus comprising the lands of central and southern Mexico, all of Belize, Guatemala, El S ...

. In 1997, new evidence suggested that domestication occurred 8,000 to 10,000 years ago, a few thousand years earlier than previous estimates. That would be 4,000 years earlier than the domestication of

maize Maize (; ''Zea mays''), also known as corn in North American English, is a tall stout grass that produces cereal grain. It was domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago from wild teosinte. Native American ...

and

beans A bean is the seed of some plants in the legume family (Fabaceae) used as a vegetable for human consumption or animal feed. The seeds are often preserved through drying (a ''pulse''), but fresh beans are also sold. Dried beans are tradition ...

, the other major food plant groups in Mesoamerica. Archeological and genetic plant research in the 21st century suggests that the peoples of eastern North America independently domesticated squash, sunflower, marsh elder, and chenopod. Portuguese sailors introduced kabocha to Japan in 1541, bringing it with them from

Cambodia Cambodia, officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. It is bordered by Thailand to the northwest, Laos to the north, and Vietnam to the east, and has a coastline ...

. The Portuguese name for the squash, ''Camboja abóbora'' (), was shortened by the Japanese to ''kabocha''. Alternatively, the Portuguese origin is the word ''cabaça'' for ''gourd''. Kabocha is written in

Kanji are logographic Chinese characters, adapted from Chinese family of scripts, Chinese script, used in the writing of Japanese language, Japanese. They were made a major part of the Japanese writing system during the time of Old Japanese and are ...

as (literally, "southern melon"), and it is also occasionally referred to as (

Nanking Nanjing or Nanking is the capital of Jiangsu, a province in East China. The city, which is located in the southwestern corner of the province, has 11 districts, an administrative area of , and a population of 9,423,400. Situated in the Yan ...

melon). In China, this term is applied to many types of squashes with harder skin and beefier flesh (including pumpkins), not just kabochas.

Gallery

File:Kabocha (GH) 21June2005 sown 14June.JPG, Seedling File:Kabocha 5July2005 sown 14June.JPG, First leaf File:Kabocha KK 17July2005.JPG, Branching habit File:Kabocha female 4August2005 (side) sown 14June.JPG, Flower File:Kabocha males 4August2005 sown 14June.JPG, Flower and flower bud File:Kabocha KK female fruit 9August2005 sown 14June.JPG, Young fruit File:Kabocha 1st Harvest 18September2005.JPG, Whole squashes File:Kabocha Cut Open 29September2005.jpg, Section, showing seeds File:Kabocha Flower Scar 18September2005.JPG, Flower scar File:Kabocha Peduncle 18September2005.JPG, Peduncle File:Kabocha Roasted 29September2005.jpg, Dish of roasted kabocha

References

{{Squashes and pumpkins Squashes and pumpkins Japanese vegetables