Kanpyō
Kanpyō, Kanpyo or kampyo are long, thick, dried, Calabash shavings. Calabash, Langeraria sicearia var hispida, is a variety of bottle gourd native to tropical Africa but has gained immense popularity in Japanese cuisine probably because of its health benefits and unique taste.
Kanpyo has remained an important ingredient of the famous Japanese staple maki sushi and futomaki, a thick sushi roll from the Edo era.
Since futomaki is a thick, elongated sushi roll, we grate calabash gourd in wide and long shavings. These shavings are then dried to lock the nutrients and later used to make sushi rolls.
But the whole of this debate does not mean that kanpyo is only an ingredient of futokami; in fact, kanpyo graces the table in many other dishes as an esteemed ingredient, like Aemono, which are marinated foods, and Nimono, the simmered foods. So kanpyo can be considered a valued ingredient in Japanese cuisine throughout its history.
See also : Calabash
Special Precautions of Kanpyō
Like other members of the family Cucurbitaceae, gourds contain cucurbitacins that are known to be cytotoxic at a high concentration. The tetracyclic triterpenoid cucurbitacins present in fruits and vegetables of the cucumber family are responsible for the bitter taste, and could cause stomach ulcers. In extreme cases, people have died from drinking the juice of gourds.The toxic cases are usually due to the gourd being used to make juice, which the drinkers described as being unusually bitter. In three of the lethal cases, the victims were diabetics in their 50s and 60s.In 2018, a healthy woman in her 40s was hospitalized for severe reactions after consuming the juice and died three days later from complications. The plant is not normally toxic when eaten. The excessively bitter (and toxic) gourds are due to improper storage (temperature swings or high temperature) and over-ripening.
Health Benefits and Uses of Kanpyō
Kampyo is rich in calcium and dietary fiber. Even in its dried form, Kampyo contains 250mg of calcium and 30g of dietary fiber per 100g.
