You may have heard about the debates where ridge gourd is often compared with zucchini or cucumber due to similar appearances and flavour. But rarely would you have heard of loofah while talking about ridge gourd or luffa. Yes, that's the other name for ridge gourd.
Across Asia, in countries such as India, China and Vietnam, luffa is eaten as a vegetable when it is harvested at a young stage. It is edible at this time. In West Bengal, for instance, luffa is cooked with shrimp and other seafood while in Tamil Nadu, the white spongy flesh of the gourd is used to make poriyal. People may also make fritters out of luffa.
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