Kiwano

Aptly dubbed hedgehog gourd in some texts, this fruit gets short shrift from me (and from broad sampling of chefs, who came up with one use, as a dessert garnish). More a curiosity than a comestible, this strange cucurbit was an African horned cucumber until the 1980s, when it was rechristened and trademarked Kiwano for export from New Zealand. (Many goods from New Zealand are marketed with a kiwi prefix.)

Whatever the virtues of this piggy bank—satellite gourd, edibility is not an obvious one (although it would prevent dehydration in the Kalahari Desert, near which it originated). Cut open the barbed, rubbery orange skin and you’ll have a refreshing whiff of grassy cucumber. Suck the Jell-O-green blobs that encapsulate the many seeds to sample its tart taste. But just try to do anything else with it that involves eating!