Featured on the USA Slow Food Ark of Taste, an endangered and culturally significant food. Also known as the Tennessee Sweet Potato Pumpkin, the Cushaw is an old southern heirloom. First listed in 1847 by New York seedsman James Thorburn as Green Striped Bell and most likely renamed by Burpee in 1883. Grown by southern farmers for generations. We currently sell the long-neck Cushaw, which is great for chefs because this means the yield is high. The flesh has very little seed in it, all of the seeds are held in the bulbous lower part of the squash.
“This is the tofu of squashes, as it absorbs the flavors of the food with which it is cooked. It has a very mild taste, certainly not sweet as the name might suggest. A white-and-green, pear shaped winter squash that can grow up to 12 pounds the variety stores well and has a greenish-white flesh color.”
It is an historical foodway of Appalachia originally grown by Native Americans and incorporated into settler agriculture. It is still revered by both native Americans and mountain folk to this day.
