BUFFALO GOURD - Is This Soapy Fruit Actually Edible? (Coyote Gourd/Stinking Gourd)

[@WeirdExplorer]

How would you use this fruit? A) Leech out the Bitterness in a stream B) Throw it at someone C) Make soap D) Make Ornaments E) Cat toy

[@acamelwholikescoke4641]

Would 10/10 throw it at someone

[@josephpotter5766]

Clearly the only correct answer is E) Amuse Cats.

[@starspawn507]

B or D

[@TheWeirdestOfBugs]

Cat toy. Vostok's shenanigans were so funny I couldn't stop laughing.

[@tachyonicnewt2473]

E

[@untermench3502]

I was talking with a Biology student from Iraq who told me the Desert People graft Watermelons to the root stock of these gourds because they have a very deep root system and are able to survive the arid conditions there. They are very secretive on how they do it and he was going to university to try and figure their technique out.

[@lukehahn4489]

Grafting ain't a secret

[@untermench3502]

@@lukehahn4489 It is to them and techniqe makes a big difference. It's one thing to graft a plant and another that produces a good crop of marketable melons.

[@bor3549]

My brother and I have tried for YEARS to find a way to eat this. It's everywhere here in north central Kansas. We've boiled it, leached it for days, salted it, put it in a slowcooker for 5 days. After all of that and more, you've summoned it up the best- "Tastes like poison!"

[@twoheadedchicken7904]

Hmmm did you try drying it in dehydrator?

[@ashaler__]

i have news for you and your brother: i think you can eat the seeds if roasted, hope this helps

[@niraea]

have you tried anything with vinegar or alcohol? i'm not a food scientist or anything but i feel like that would be the next logical step.

[@dankline9162]

Is that true for all stages of ripeness, bc i noticed there were seeds were in his. Maybe when they're small?

[@bradthunderpants3283]

@@ashaler__ He did this in this video. dried, cleaned and cooked it and still said it tastes like soap.

[@megastoejoe]

"Don't eat it!" Take his word, this guy eats fire and snorts screwdrivers.

[@DB46811]

That’s about what I was thinking. If he puts swords down his throat but spits this out? Trust Jared’s word that this is nasty 🤮

[@AshiwiZuni]

Zuni native here, these arent EATING foods. The ONLY thing we ever used this gourd in traditionally is in medicines and like you said, soap making 🤣

[@WeirdExplorer]

Thank you for confirming this. I'm not sure why this misinformation is online

[@sdfkjgh]

@@WeirdExplorer: Because it's misinformation, and it's online. Haven't you been paying attention to current events?

[@MandrakeFernflower]

So it's equivalent to drinking a shot glass full of dawn I bet it works well as a laxative though

[@joshuarichards8065]

I think they make an appearance in Fallout New Vegas . . . . . as a food item. Really wish the devs or writers did their research.

[@sdfkjgh]

@@joshuarichards8065: Oh, I don't know. The game's about survival in a post-apocalyptic wasteland, right? Something like this sounds perfect for that setting: a questionably edible food of last resort.

[@theshunnedone2955]

Hey! I’m from Texas and I’m actually very familiar with Buffalo guard! I eat them fairly often and as you said it is a bit tricky. First of all, you should only eat the seeds long after the gourd has turned tan and is completely dry. Then you collect the seeds and wash them thoroughly, the seeds are not bitter but a thin filmy lair on the outside is and this is what you’re trying to remove. If it’s dry enough is should peel off easily or already be off. Then you can prepare like pumpkin seeds I typed this half way through the video for whatever reason. to clean the seeds better I used and electric mixer to spin the seeds in water as well as letting them soak in salt water over night. Then I used a colander similar to the one you used to give it a few thorough rinses before roasting them

[@BrushieOG]

I now have more respect for The Courier from Fallout NV as he can just pluck some off the vine, then eat the entire stack he's been hoarding for 5HP over 5 seconds each... Then again, it must be better than Insta-Mash.

[@YourFoxFriendYT]

I mean I’d eat it over 200 year old expired TV dinners

[@VincentGonzalezVeg]

Takes bite instant nuclear winter

[@bradthunderpants3283]

The item is actually named buffalo gourd seed. so i imagine your courier isnt just eating the whole fruit

[@1810jeff]

@@YourFoxFriendYT yeah as long as they stayed dry they probably won't poison you but they'll probably be very unpleasant

[@LaynieFingers]

Technically you can eat a bar of soap, but I wouldn't recommend it. "Can" definitely does not equal "should."

[@Hortifox_the_gardener]

While the soap itself is not poisonous a bubble buildup in your stomach could potentially suffocate you. That sometimes (tragically) happens with children eating dish cleaning soap.

[@proffesionalweredog7426]

@@Hortifox_the_gardener woah, i didnt know that

[@GHumpty1965]

Buffalo gourd ( Cucurbita foetidissima ) and Coyote gourd ( Cucurbita palmata (californica ) are two totally different plants with different leaf structures. The plants are similar looking with similar fruits, but distinctively they are different. There is a lot of confusion on the internet grouping both plants together, both have bitter Gourds, seeds are edible if roasted. .

[@pcarter1989]

When you compare things to strange fruits I've never heard of before, you lose me. But when you compare a gourd to drinking strange undersink chemicals, now you're speaking my language!

[@h7opolo]

i love your fool-proof disclaimer; "if you decide to eat this, blame someone else, not me."

[@NorthRainProductions]

I found a patch in the Mojave. Bit into one. The most bitter thing ai have ever eaten. 15 years later and I'm still tasting it.

[@pixelpatter01]

YES

[@ArmchairDeity]

A flavor not even COVID-19 could cancel...

[@YourFoxFriendYT]

Patrolling the Mojave makes you wish for a Nuclear Winter

[@lukehahn4489]

@@YourFoxFriendYT Fallout everwhere

[@let_uslunch8884]

It was an experience. We laughed, we cried, we were unsure. Time passed, hair grew, the cat played, arts and crafts we're done, we researched and referenced other videos. Oh and we dined. The times we had in one video.

[@WeirdExplorer]

That's my favorite kind to make :)

[@JTMusicbox]

Good kitty! She’s saving you from the evil poisonous fruit!

[@saddletramp1860]

Most cattle won't eat them, but some go out of their way to find them, they smell each one untill they find one they like and seem to relish it.

[@implausibleimpossiblehypot4006]

quite fascinating

[@draconian_dragons6588]

Fire name my dude

[@richardportman8912]

That's interesting.

[@implausibleimpossiblehypot4006]

@@draconian_dragons6588 yours is preety dope 2 if your writing to me

[@aak8297]

Maybe they had a need for it. This thing is probably packed with saponin which have medical effects.

[@heatwavedave7713]

I believe this is the most jocular episode of your show to date. Kudos on the painting.

[@johnburke8337]

I think this was the most we've seen you work for consistently unpleasant flavors. It'll probably be on one of the review lists in the future

[@WeirdExplorer]

yep. such a huge undertaking for something that tasted awful

[@peterconway6584]

@@WeirdExplorer Even if the seeds had turned out edible, that's 'way too much effort into something so scanty.

[@ikreate4u]

Oh my. You get an A+ for dedication and effort. This video was strangely hilarious to me.

[@pixelpatter01]

I brought a gourd like that home once from the desert and planted it near my garden and the thing cross fertilized some of the other squash in the garden and made them ALL bitter. It is very bitter and nasty.

[@gerbilkill]

I had some come up in my yard. I didn't think anything of it. It made my tomatoes taste so bitter I couldn't eat em. Never had bitter tomatoes before

[@14ToeBeans]

Your cat playing with the gourds was so adorable. What a sweetheart.

[@girlinthelocket]

wow i literally picked one up a few months ago and researched it and found out it was a buffalo gourd. cool to see it on your channel.

[@brandon9172]

The fallout new vegas fruit

[@joshuarichards8065]

Thought so, really wish the devs or writers did more research on it.

[@EmperorsChildren]

And even after the apocalypse you only eat the seeds

[@creashaksorgazine2788]

70th like nice

[@xxneramacxx4435]

That is why I came here.....

[@TheGrinningViking]

I think the difference here is the difference between "can" and "should." You can eat the fruit, it's not poison, but you shouldn't. You SHOULD give them to the nearest cat and let them bat them around 👍🏼

[@evilcanofdrpepper]

and maybe turn them into cool Christmas decorations...

[@Rusticsewing]

squash toxicity is a thing

[@carlospiedra308]

I found something similar in mexico. It was as hard as a baseball. No one eats it because it's very bitter. In a village in mexico called rapacuaro theres a lot of trees of this. I forgot what they call it

[@sonofammonite1714]

Been watching your channel for years man, great to see how much it has grown :) thanks for the great content

[@JA-wo4hh]

I don't think I've had this many full belly laughs in a long time, thank you Jared!

[@damianlopez7630]

If it lathers up while boiling...then it can be used to actually make soaps.

[@KingFriday1989]

Love how creative you get with your videos. Adding in stuff that I would never expect. Like painting the gourd.

[@anne-droid7739]

I love that you painted it to look like its younger self. L'oreal wants to know your location.

[@DioDinero]

His natural expression is mildly concerned

[@NotSoCrazyNinja]

Your reaction after tasting the unripe one is priceless. I imagine that reaction would be similar to how our long-ago ancestors would have reacted tasting some unknown plants. Ancient human: Hmm, I wonder if this leaf is edible... *nibble* oh hell no *throws it on the ground*

[@AshesAshes44]

Those grew on my family's ranch in the desert southwest! Someone told me they could be eaten after soaking in water, so that's what I did. Nope, nope, nope, nope! It reminded me of the bitterant added to dangerous chemicals, no matter how long they soaked. Definitely better used as cat toys and ornaments. P.S., we called them coyote squash

[@Fiercedeity02]

This episode actually really cheered me up today. Thank you

[@lemurgecko1513]

great stream I really enjoyed this episode. I watched all the way to the end.

[@Ronnie-Bagpipe]

holy shit so your telling me when I was playing Fallout New Vegas I was just walking around plucking these out of the ground and eating poison like its no big deal, thats pretty bad ass maybe you did get a little brain damage from getting shot in the head at the beginning

[@00muinamir]

Cat knows what's up. Silly human, that's not for eats!

[@Appealsman]

I have a friend who harvests and eats the blossoms, cooked. She says they taste like any other squash blossom. The roots are reported to be SAVAGELY laxative, so much so that it is problematic to measure a therapeutic dose. I have heard tell of one yerbera who used it successfully in an extreme case of intestinal blockage. I wouldn't mess with it.

[@WeirdExplorer]

hm.. interesting, I didn't know that the flowers were edible. At least there is some use to it then

[@richardportman8912]

I don't mess with that plant. I might try and cook a blossom or two, just to see how they taste. I think it is not a food plant.

[@karenmontgomery7655]

We've cooked and eaten the blossoms as well. They truly do taste like any other squash blossom. We were also careful to only harvest the male blossoms, not the female ones with the baby fruit attached.

[@sandstorm6605]

Ahh the stink gourd. Yeahhh...we don’t eat those. Hell, we don’t even touch those. Edit: As kids we may have thrown them at one another...

[@WeirdExplorer]

that's the best use for it

[@sandstorm6605]

@@WeirdExplorer Oh by far

[@joshuarichards8065]

Sounds like my childhood too lol.

[@Grizzlox]

I was looking for this comment. We had "grenade" fights with these

[@dizasteroid7]

Just don't step on the leaves. Mom won't let you back in the house. XD

[@JimmyJoeization]

One of the only videos I looked at more than once. I like your style and humor.

[@evilcanofdrpepper]

I thought that we as a society already learned the lesson "don't eat soap" from the tide pod challenge...

[@damianlopez7630]

You are Remarkable. Very Intelligent and Precise. Thank You again.

[@ambulocetusnatans]

The species name "foetidissima" kinda tells you all you need to know.

[@peterconway6584]

Indeed.

[@thestrangegreenman]

It's the rottenest! (R)

[@grandbean9031]

Foetid AND dismal. Perfect.

[@marialiyubman]

😂 I’d like a top ten of that species.

[@Mattinvent3]

No not really that just sounds like every other plant name to me is there something im missing

[@miskee11]

gardens sell these things as part of a mixture of decorative gourds and pumpkins. they last for a very long time. you can also use them as rattles when they dry up lol.

[@nferraro222]

Need to sell a T-shirt that says "I'll Eat It - I Ain't Skeered!" There is a big difference between Edible and Tasty:)

[@Verlisify]

"Let's try these seeds" *western music stops*

[@cezarcatalin1406]

**masochistic music proceeds**

[@user-uf7kl4dh7j]

@@cezarcatalin1406 well that took a turn

[@santiagolazo6800]

I bit into one of these last year out of curiosity. Regretted it for the next two hours couldnt get the toxic taste out of my mouth tastes exactly like something you shouldnt put in your mouth. great video friend!

[@tsarmi9864]

Omg I remember the osage apple seeds, and how they made the floor sticky. Hilarious. I love that you painted a gourd. Thanks, like usual for teaching us.

[@sandysani6045]

The funny thing is that when you eat something you like ( in other videos) you have a very disgusted expression on your face, but when you eat something that you really don't like you smile! You are indeed out of the ordinary!

[@damianlopez7630]

Use air wind to cause fibres to fly away while the heavier seeds fall to bottom. Like how wheat and rice are sifted...yes??? Blow the chaff out. ☺

[@samrichardson8388]

What a twist! I never would have expected you to paint it like an unripe gourd!

[@christopherbrand5360]

You could have just titled this: “Oh... NO! No, no, no, NO!” Sadly, some plants are not good to eat.

[@k8eekatt]

After noni ketchup we might need to see if this will.....never mind.

[@pepre7594]

@@k8eekatt that is what I like to call "spiced soap", tastes like onion and death

[@sdfkjgh]

9:26 Suddenly getting very strong HowToBasic vibes.

[@pattheplanter]

I was really hoping for 10 minutes of cat playing with gourds when I looked at the timer.

[@zachb8012]

You have a commendable commitment to eating things for which the consensus agrees are inedible.

[@SenHai]

I feel bad for all the suffering this gourd put you through. :P But it was entertaining.

[@draw4kicks]

This was an incredibly entertaining video, really enjoy your sense of humour man keep up the good work!

[@PeteofHartainia]

The trick to keep away pests makes alot of sense. My dad used diluted Murphy's oil soap in a sprayer to remove scale and aphids from plants. The oil prevents the insects from breathing and the residue is inedible for them. The oil also doesn't inhibit the plants functions.

[@TheGooseIsLoose9000]

The horror music when you were getting ready to eat the fruit makes me want to watch horror videos now.

[@SnarkNSass]

Sorry i missed it last week. Glad i caught it today. I'm laffin and feeling bad for you and laffin!!😂😂💖💖✌ You got your paints out! Art imitates life imitates art.✌🖖

[@ernierosas8422]

I think the seeds had the after taste because u tried to clean them in the water with the little bits of flesh. U should have picked off the seeds without the water after sifting it through the colander

[@haze6647]

"Blame somebody else if you get poisoned, don't blame me" Ok, I will blame rowan then.

[@shawnkay5462]

🤣🤣

[@richardportman8912]

Back to the gourd patch. I was keeping an eye on those coyote gourds because they are so cool and interesting. They have beautiful flowers that look just like our garden squash flowers. They are "totally badass " and interesting. They have bees and other insects. Today i want to tell about how the squirrels ate them. They waited until they were ripe, about the size of an orange, but when they were still green. Coyote gourds.

[@gucciman4380]

This was great wholesome content haha! Great video jared I liked this one alot. Your humor is great.

[@richardportman8912]

Cool to see these. They grow here. Ground squirrels eat the seeds. Super cool plant but not people food. Glad your cat likes them.

[@RubikRocksMinecraft]

I actually got some of these from someone! I was told you need to eat these when they’re super small. Got them from an organic permaculture farmer. I also was told they’re good for keeping pests away as a companion crop.

[@Loserfr]

Hello Jared. At 12:10, maybe you could use a fan to blow the fibers away while you throw the seeds in the air.

[@pattheplanter]

Very hot water removes saponins much more effectively than cold water. You can concentrate the soapy saponins from some plants by boiling them up then leaving it to go cold, The saponins separate out. Did you know that some Baja Californian natives would eat pitahaya cactus fruit then recover the seeds from their faeces and roast and eat them?

[@Gnomgnash]

mfw this popped up in my recomendations a couple of seconds after being posted

[@scottr291]

Same

[@cezarcatalin1406]

Your profile picture... we could make a religion out of this !

[@Killersnake432]

I always wondered how these tasted since they grow pretty often around here and even in the alleyways here. As well I do remember as a kid me and friends used to throw these at each other... Good times.

[@afeathereddinosaur]

I wonder why the cat got interested in that stuff, I mean, my dog has no interest in an apple unless I pierce it and let some juice out, upon which she just eats the thing whole.

[@Wolf-Spirit_Alpha-Sigma]

🤣

[@AlexQarakh]

My cat has played with a potato so I'm not surprised

[@pallavidutta9621]

@@Wolf-Spirit_Alpha-Sigma username checks out

[@JediFarce]

"On next week's episode, backyard mushrooms, are they edible?"

[@Aqua_Toad]

These are everywhere where I live in Cañon City. It's fun to see you explore them. They're completely treated as garbage around here.

[@jordanbonanno3833]

He said have you ever just gone under your kitchen cabinet and took a swing of whatever was under there? Um no sir I have not.

[@Honeybadger7]

Thank you for the information. Just came across it on my hike today.

[@realblakrawb]

I think this is the most animated ive seen you. You cracked me up a few times.

[@ddewittfulton]

I was thinking about early tribal settlers, perhaps the Chumash in my region, coming along and finding long patches of these suckers and thinking, "hey, these are easy to catch!" and then the disappointment that would follow. I wonder if they had a gjy they always blamed this sort of thing on. "Oh, nice job, Neil! Good work locating the 'stink fruit'!"

[@SpaceCase100]

Jared is like the AVGN young more chill cousin, the Un-Angry Fruit-Eating Nerd

[@aza8800]

You're so right lol

[@voicelessglottalfricative6567]

I like how Jared isn't even completely sure if it's edible but just decided to try it anyway

[@rcleveringa65]

In the book Prairyerth by William Least Heat -Moon He writes a nice section on this gourd, Lots of details.

[@sleepyoldtiger372]

Extra thumbs up for the cute cat vid at the end!!! 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼

[@jackiehammond6168]

I found this because I was curious about the edibility of gourds after reading a passage in the book of 2 Kings 4:38-44. In this passage, there was a famine in the land of Gilgal, so they used wild gourds to make a stew, but in order to temper the bitterness, Elisha added flour to the pot and they were able to stomach it.

[@WeirdExplorer]

That's fascinating, thanks!

[@abbilocke736]

That was a hilarious painting!

[@stephen33]

"Don't..Do This?!...." I love this guy.

[@ConstantinaMatsikaKlossa]

That was SO entertaining to watch. I laughed so hard! For me it's b) throw it at someone. Use it as a weapon and it adds +2 poison damage.

[@jackbarnhart7394]

this is my favorite youtube channel

[@riasatbinliaquat2799]

When you had that goard in your fork , I was doing like Eat! Eat ! Eat ! 😂😂

[@nikkireyesph]

Found a paper (Surfactant Properties of Saponins of Agave Durangensis, Application on Arsenic Removal by Gonzales-Valdez et al.) that contains instructions on how to remove saponins in plants. They soaked in alcohol to extract the saponins while stiring it at 30 rpm.

[@bradthunderpants3283]

Hey thanks for the resource on edible plants.

[@puffinish]

This was really interesting! Also, here's a few ideas maybe for future videos. Would you ever be willing to try and eat a pitcher plant? Also, a video about acorns would be really interesting!

[@vladimirputindreadlockrast812]

I remember that song from It's A Wonderful Life: "Buffalo gourds, won't you come out tonight? Come out tonight, Come out tonight? Buffalo gourds, won't you come out tonight, And dance by the light of the moon?"

[@Bubu567]

My uncle would eat everything. And I mean everything. And even he told me buffalo gourds can't be eaten. He made soap out of them. That's it. It's not food. So much misinformation out there, or maybe people with non-functioning tongues, but no, the unripe version can't be eaten. Maybe it's not poison... but it sure tastes like poison.

[@NayrbRellimer]

If I decide to grow wild ozark gourd (Cucurbita pepo subsp. ozarkana) I could ship you some fruits in varying stages of ripeness and you could try them. If I get good results when attempting to leach out the bitter saponins and cucurbitacins from the young fruit, I could also send you some dehydrated flour from the fruits.

[@CAMacKenzie]

These things (AKA wild pumpkin) grow in the hills near me (Los Angeles). One Haloween I took a big one (about the size of a softball) and made a Jack-o'-lantern out of it. I had to wash my hands and tools VERY WELL afterward. I don't think I've ever tasted anything quite as bitter.

[@morgellon9449]

I never thought I'd see someone eat one of those things. But I'm not surprised it's this guy.

[@ramoncgtc]

Love how you eat exotic fruit that I never thought it existed.

[@SavageGreywolf]

it's not poisonous. It just becomes super super bitter. As an old mushroom manual I used to own said: "Edible but YUCK"

[@boringjoe3927]

“I’ve painted it to look like an unripe buffalo gourd” ahh yes what an imagination!

[@jamiecurran3544]

Ah this episode brought back nostalgic childhood memories of having my mouth washed out with soap when caught swearing!😭🤣😂👍

[@NamelessKing1597]

4:17 music was a nice touch

[@Shortdraw01]

Haha! That’s dedication to your craft. Ask your boss for a raise.