Cantaloupe

American Western cantaloupe (muskmelon)

The cantaloupe (sometimes spelled cantaloup in Canadian English; less commonly cantalope in American English) (Template:IPAc-en, Template:Respell or Template:IPAc-en, Template:Respell) is a type of true melon (Cucumis melo) with sweet, aromatic, and usually orange flesh. Originally, cantaloup referred to the true cantaloupe or European cantaloupe with non- to slightly netted and often ribbed rind. Today, it also refers to the muskmelon with strongly netted rind,<ref name="Pitrat 2017">Template:Cite book</ref> which is called cantaloupe in North America (hence the name American cantaloupe), rockmelon in Australia and New Zealand, and spanspek in Southern Africa. Cantaloupes range in mass from Template:Convert.

Etymology

The name cantaloupe derived from the French and Italian languages in relation to Cantalupo, the name of a summer estate of the Vatican near Rome where melons were first grown in the 18th century.<ref name="oed">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="ens">Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref> The name was first used in English in 1739.<ref name=oed/>

History

The cantaloupe may have originated in a region from South Asia to Africa, although its exact origin is unknown.<ref name="ens" /> According to one source, "cantaloupes were cultivated in Egypt and migrated across to Iran and Northwest India dating as far back to Biblical times, about 2400 BC."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Types

The true or European cantaloupe (Cantalupensis group), which has non- to slightly netted rind and orange flesh, includes the following types:<ref name="Pitrat 2017" />

• Subgroup Prescott with deeply ribbed rind, such as 'Prescott Fond Blanc'.
• Subgroup Saccharinu with speckled and slightly ribbed rind, such as 'Sucrin de Honfleur'
• Subgroup Charentais with non-speckled, slightly ribbed and green-sutured rind.

The Israeli cantaloupe (subgroup Ha'Ogen) is similar to the European one, but it has green flesh.<ref name="Pitrat 2017" />

The muskmelon or American cantaloupe (Cantalupensis group), which has strongly netted rind and orange flesh, includes the following types:<ref name="Pitrat 2017" /> Template:Table alignment

Cantaloupe production
Template:Small

Template:CHN	14.5
Template:TUR	1.4
Template:KAZ	1.4
Template:GUA	0.9
Template:AFG	0.8
Template:IRN	0.6
Template:USA	0.6
World	29.5
Template:Small<ref name="faostat">Template:Cite web</ref>

• Subgroup American Western with non- to slightly ribbed and wholly netted rind.
• Subgroup American Eastern with more or less ribbed rind of which the sutures are not or less netted.

Some sources also include Tuscan melons among American cantaloupes.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> These Tuscan-type melons have smaller seed cavities like American western varieties but also have ribs like American eastern varieties. Tuscan melons have noticeably different flavor, potentially due to higher production of ester compounds in these varieties.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

Similar types

A melon with netted rind is not necessarily a cantaloupe. Many varieties of Chandalak group and Ameri group also have netted rind.<ref name="Pitrat 2017" />

The Japanese muskmelon (subgroup Earl's) resembles the American cantaloupe in netted rind, but differs in green flesh and non-dehiscent peduncles. Therefore, some horticulturists classify the Japanese muskmelon under Inodorus group instead of Cantalupensis or Reticulatus group.<ref name="Pitrat 2017" />

Production

In 2023, world production of cantaloupes (and other melons) was 29.5 million tonnes, led by China with 49% of the total (table).

Uses

Culinary

Cantaloupe is normally eaten as a fresh fruit, as a salad, or as a dessert with ice cream or custard. Melon pieces wrapped in prosciutto are a familiar antipasto. The seeds are edible and may be dried for use as a snack.

Because the surface of a cantaloupe can contain harmful bacteria—in particular, Salmonella<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>—it is recommended that a melon be washed and scrubbed thoroughly before cutting and consumption to prevent risk of Salmonella or other bacterial pathogens.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

A moldy cantaloupe in a Peoria, Illinois, market in 1943 was found to contain the highest yielding strain of mold for penicillin production, after a worldwide search.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Nutrition

Raw cantaloupe is 90% water, 8% carbohydrates, 1% protein and contains negligible fat (table). In a reference amount of Template:Convert, raw cantaloupe supplies 34 calories of food energy, and is a rich source (20% or more of the Daily Value, DV) of vitamin A (26% DV) and a moderate source of vitamin C (12% DV) (table), with no other micronutrients in significant amounts (less than 10% DV).

See also

• Melon
• Watermelon
• Honeydew

External links

• Template:Commons category-inline
• Sorting Cucumis names– Multilingual multiscript plant name database