Benincasa hispida, the wax gourd or winter melon, produces large juicy-textured fruits that Asia treats as a vegetable. Cooks stir-fry them, pickle them sweet, simmer them in soups, or stuff them with meat or vegetables and steam the whole thing. They answer to several names — ash pumpkin, ash gourd, Chinese fuzzy gourd, Chinese preserving melon. The mature fruit grows the thick waxy skin that gives the species its name, and that skin lets it keep for months at room temperature, a serious asset where refrigeration is scarce. The flesh is mostly water, prized for texture, keeping quality, and soaking up flavours rather than for nutrients; the young fuzzy fruits are cooked as a separate summer vegetable.