Description Shipping Information We ship Bottle Gourd only to a limited number of states. Please check the shipping information tab for the list. Bottle Gourd also is known as Lauki is one of the healthiest and most ancient vegetables. It was mentioned in the earliest Ayurvedic texts during the Samhita period and was called Alabu. It’s the perfect food during the hot months of summer as its cooling, hydrating, moistening, and restores minerals. When Bottle Gourd is fully ripe it has a sweet rasa (taste), cold vīrya (cools the body), and sweet vipāka (nourishes the body). It is 92% water (pure plant sap) and balances both vata and pitta, and increases kapha in a healthy way. It’s a rich source of vitamin C, B, and K as well as sodium, calcium, iron, and zinc. Ayurvedic Uses: • Pitta gastritis with a burning sensation, malabsorption • Cleanses urinary bladder • Rejuvenates liver and gall bladder function • Improves bowel movements • Reduces gouty arthritis • Headache (vata or pitta type) The easiest way to prepare a bottle gourd is to juice it. For therapeutic benefit, it’s best to have it first thing in the morning on an empty stomach. Only make the amount you will drink because it oxidizes (turns brown) very fast. Bottle gourd is versatile and there are many recipes for curry, dhal, chutney, raita, and much more. Bottle Gourd Juice • 1 ½ cups bottle gourd • ¼ cup mint leaves packed • ¼ cup cilantro leaves packed • ¼ inch piece ginger • 1 Tbls. Fresh lemon juice • ½ tsp. rock salt • ¼ tsp. black pepper • 1 ½ cups purified water 1) Wash, peel and chop the bottle gourd. Make sure it tastes sweet rather than bitter. If bitter then DO NOT make juice. If sweet then add to a blender. 2) Add mint leaves, coriander leaves, ginger, fresh lemon juice, rock salt, black pepper, and ½ cup of water. Blend until a smooth paste. 3) Add the remaining water and blend well. Strain using a wide mesh strainer and a spoon to push it through, it will be thick. Pour t