Melon Gulyabi: characteristics of the variety and useful properties

Features of the variety

The Gulyabi variety is primarily distinguished by a long shelf life. Pumpkins grow in the form of an elongated oval weighing up to 7 kilograms. The peel is covered with a continuous mesh with small cells, orange or yellow-green. Inside the melon is white, with a greenish tint closer to the hard peel. At the same time, the pulp becomes sweeter the longer Gulyabi is stored. It is this property that distinguishes the variety from other varieties.

Full ripening takes 133 days, but paying with patience for a crop of 10-14 kilograms per square meter is not a big price.

Breeders have bred several varieties of Gulyabi, which are suitable for different regions and the needs of gardeners:

• Gulyabi-803 – cultivated in Turkmenistan, distinguished by bright yellow ovoid fruits with sweet, crispy flesh.
• Chok is a variety that has a thin orange skin, like other species, but the flesh is viscous.
• Chardzhouskaya – a variety with smooth pumpkins, without an outstanding pattern on the peel. The pulp is very juicy, fibrous. Pumpkins keep well until spring.
• Boswaldi are medium-sized pumpkins of this variety, their peel is wrinkled, green with dark stripes. The pulp in them is not very much, it is loose and fibrous. Unfortunately, it doesn’t keep very long.

Useful Properties

Chardzhuy melons have a rich chemical composition, which in many ways affects the human body. Only pumpkin collected from the garden contains 90% water, up to 17% sugar, 0,8% starch, 0,3% fiber, 0,1% acids, and aromatic substances. A lot of vitamin C (more than 20%), high content of carotene.

The variety cleans the intestines well. Moreover, the vitamin cocktail in the pumpkin pulp promotes the production of endorphins, which affect mood and emotional stability. Chilled pulp helps to cope with overheating.

Long-term storage starts hydrolysis of starch, which improves the taste of the fruit and its sweetness. That is why you can pick pumpkins unripe and leave them in storage to make them sweeter.

Potassium and iron, which are found in abundance in the pulp, are very useful for anemia, heart disease, restore the functioning of the kidneys and liver. Widely used to treat gout and rheumatism. Silicon strengthens hard tissues, has a positive effect on the structure of hair and skin. This element helps to normalize the functioning of the nervous system, the cerebral cortex, and the gastrointestinal tract. Beta-carotene (and there is more of it in melon than in carrots) improves skin condition. The positive effects of vitamin C and folic acid on the body are sung in many textbooks, because they increase and strengthen the immune system, the nervous system. They help to quickly relieve fatigue and increase the internal endurance of the body.

Of course, no disease can be cured by melon alone, no matter what variety it is. But if you regularly eat this magical fruit, combining it with other healthy foods, then you will increase the body’s immunity and improve your health.

How to choose

Oddly enough, but many people do not know how to choose ripe melons. Of course, due to the variety of shapes, colors, and structure of the peel, it is quite difficult to deduce the criteria for maturity, but still nothing is impossible. Whatever the variety, there are always a few things in common when pumpkins ripen.

When choosing the Chardzhui variety, be guided primarily by the smell. A ripe melon has a rich, sweet flavor that comes from the skin. However, it’s not scary if you buy an unripe fruit – just put it in a cool, dry place so that it ripens on its own. This will not adversely affect the quality of the pulp and its sweetness.

Be sure to inspect the pumpkin from all sides. The ripe fruit is soft where the flower was, but the stem should be plump and dry. Another green stalk means that the pumpkin was removed from the bed unripe in order to be safely taken to the store or market.

Check the density of the peel. The peel of a ripe melon easily breaks up with the top layer. Scratch it with your fingernail, if the green part of the pulp immediately appears – the pumpkin is ripe. But if the peel is very soft and traces easily remain on it, then the fruit is overripe and cannot be stored for a long time. The pulp will be very sweet and soft, suitable for immediate consumption.

Also, the ripeness of the fruit can be determined by the sound and color. The peel must be of the same color (excluding stripes or mesh of fibers). When patted (it is better to do it with the palm of your hand), a ripe pumpkin makes a hollow sound.

For safety and prevention of food poisoning, do not buy melons near roads or in places with obvious violations of sanitary standards. Dust from the road settles on the fruits, is absorbed into them and increases the amount of toxins and substances harmful to the body. There is also a high chance of contracting one of the many infections.

Opinions about Gulyabi as a product

Depending on the region, melons are used for different purposes. Somewhere it is an exquisite dessert, which is served in the form of ice cream, dried slices or candied fruits. Where a culture grows without human supervision, like a weed, soups are boiled from its fruits, dried, frozen, baked, that is, they are used as an ordinary vegetable or fruit.

Due to the fact that Chardzhui melons are well stored, only improving their palatability, they are valued and cherished for long winters, when it is necessary to support the body with vitamins and useful microelements.

Moreover, melon seeds can be used to make oil, which is similar in texture and taste to olive oil. The cake is used as pet food. The processed pulp becomes a source of delicious sugar. Of course, melons are very capricious when grown, so they cannot be put on stream. But if grown for their own needs, they become a good substitute for sugar cane or beets.

The Chardzhuy variety of melon looks wonderful in sweet pastries, salads, soups. For example, it is quite easy to make a cake from dried melon pulp. You will need 150 grams of melon, 100 grams of sugar, a bag of baking powder, 100 grams of butter, 3 eggs, 150 grams of flour and vanilla. Beat the egg whites until foamy, set aside in a cold place for 20-25 minutes. At this time, beat the yolks with sugar and a little warm water. Add butter, flour, vanilla and baking powder, knead the dough thoroughly. Add chilled egg whites by a teaspoon. Put the dough on a greased baking sheet or in a mold, put the dried melon and sprinkle with sugar. Bake the cake in the oven at 40°C for 180 minutes.

Video “Her Majesty Melon”

This interesting and informative video tells about the sweet Turkmen melon Gulyabi and about the delicious jam that is brewed in the homeland of this popular variety.