kind of vine with small fruit (Coccinia cordifolia; the thick young shoots are eaten as vegetables and the fruit is made into preserves)
Noun
Trichosanthes cucumerina is a tropical or subtropical vine. Its variety T. cucumerina var. anguina raised for its strikingly long fruit. In Asia, it is eaten immature as a vegetable much like the summer squash and in Africa, the reddish pulp of mature snake gourd is used as an economical substitute for tomato. Common names for the cultivated variety include snake gourd, serpent gourd, chichinda padwal and Snake Tomato.