angled loofah

noun

variants or less commonly angled luffa

1

: a narrow, cylindrical, green-skinned edible gourd that has ten prominent angular, lengthwise ridges and a spongy, white, mild-flavored flesh and that is typically eaten when immature either cooked, raw, or pickled

Angled loofah looks odd, almost inedible—like a long, skinny gourd with razor-thin ridges—but once you peel, slice, and pickle it, the slightly spongy texture and zucchini-like flavor will take to your burger quite nicely.

—Kemp Minifie, Gourmet, February 2003

Note: The interior fibrous portion of mature fruits may be dried and used as sponges.

2

: an annual tropical vine (Luffa acutangula) of the gourd family that produces angled loofahs

Angled loofah is cultivated in India, tropical Asia, and parts of the Caribbean …

—Derek B. Munro and Ernest Small, Vegetables of Canada, 1997

Note: Both the fruit and plant are also called Chinese okra, patola, ribbed gourd, ridged gourd, and ridge gourd.

Word History

First Known Use

1987, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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