words christopher rees

In some countries pumpkins are only pig fodder but the rotund gourd is much more magical than just that.

The pumpkin is hugely underrated. As perhaps the most recognizable symbol for Halloween, its colour is the most easily associated with that spooky festival. However, the pumpkin is a bit of a conundrum. For instance, how much would you bet on it being a fruit or a vegetable? It has been this sad writer’s surprise to discover that, for the most part, we are pumpkin ignorant. So with Halloween right around the corner, it is time to rectify that problem.

First things first: the pumpkin is – a fruit. A squashed fruit, to be exact, of the cucurbita species. The pumpkin is derived from the ripened ovary of a flowering plant and is, therefore, by definition a fruit. Yet many label it a vegetable for our tendency to cook it and use it in stews and soups. Who said the tomato was the only veg–, er, fruit with identity issues?

The pumpkin and Halloween go way back but there are many versions of how the connection was made. All Hallows Eve marks the end of the Celtic calendar year, and the celebrating of it was a custom brought to America by Irish immigrants. Hollowed out turnips, beets and pumpkins were placed on porches and windowsills with candles inside them to guide home the spirits of ancestors and to ward off unwanted spirits, the most celebrated of which was ‘Stingy Jack’, later transformed to ‘Jack O’Lantern’, most probably by the ancestors of Hallmark. This is the version most Americans adhere to and, when asked why they place candled pumpkins on their windowsills, this is the story they will tell.

Another version focuses more firmly on Jack as the root of the story. Once upon a time when he wasn’t quite so pumpkin looking, he tricked the devil into climbing a tree then trapped him up there by carving a cross on the trunk. Jack sounds to be a pretty decent fellow to go for a pint with, but the devil was not amused. He placed a curse on ol’ Jack that doomed him to wander the earth at night for the rest of time. Since then parents have told the cautionary tale to their children, carving pumpkins out and placing candles inside to represent Jack’s curse and simultaneously prevent deforestation.

But, of course, the pumpkin is not only a Halloween treat, though it doesn’t seem to get its rightful place in the limelight this month. In many a restaurant some truly exciting pumpkin dishes can be discovered, October or not. bc went on a little pumpkin excursion in the season of trick or treating and here is what we found…

At the fine food hall Gourmet (Lee Gardens 1, Causeway Bay) we came across some special mid-autumn festival moon cake sets (we are going to be lenient and stretch ‘mid-autumn’ out to ‘Halloween’ as moon cakes can go with either). Of particular notice is the Tian Ren Tea Moon Cake Gift Box (HK$186/box) featuring green tea pumpkin with mandarin flavour, pumpkin with lotus seeds, pumpkin with dates, and other interesting flavours.

A more ‘up market’ way to enjoy pumpkin can be found at Grissini (Grand Hyatt, 1 Harbour Road, Wan Chai 2588 1234). Their delicately prepared porcini mushroom and pumpkin risotto is exquisite and dinner for two can be had for $195.

On the second floor of the Goods Of Desire furnishing store (2/F, Leighton Centre, Sharp Street, Causeway Bay 2890 5555 is their Home Cooking branch – the kind of place you’ll never find unless you’re looking for it. The dish In Bed With Pumpkin ($88) is delectable – think a salmon steak served with homemade pumpkin mashed vegetables and dill sauce. The pumpkin might play second fiddle to the salmon but it provides a flavour to the dish one simply cannot ignore…

Now at the end of our orange hunt it’s obvious that the pumpkin is multi-talented – it can be eaten, it can be carved, it can be made into a lamp, it can be ‘chunked’ (in pumpkin chunking, competitors build catapulting contraptions to see who can fling their pumpkin the furthest). It can be the head of a very B-movie horror flick villain and it can be the centrepiece of festivals, like that to find the biggest pumpkin on record (766kg!). It can be made into a game - guess the number of seeds within or it can be used as a term of derision for women in Japan, a term of endearment for women in the American Midwest and a word to describe redheads in England. The actual thing can be used to avoid prostate cancer or as a carriage to Prince Charming’s ball if you have the right spells. Pumpkin – in seven letters you have endless opportunities. All it takes is a little adventure and a healthy appetite.
Happy Halloween!