Prab at 17:23, 13 March 2023

2023-03-13T17:23:01Z

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{{taxobox
|name = Cardamom
|image = Elettaria cardamomum - Köhler–s Medizinal-Pflanzen-057.jpg
|image_caption = True Cardamom (''Elettaria cardamomum'')
|regnum = [[Plantae]]
|unranked_divisio = [[Angiosperms]]
|unranked_classis = [[Monocots]]
|unranked_ordo = [[Commelinids]]
|ordo = [[Zingiberales]]
|familia = '''[[Zingiberaceae]]'''

|}}
'''Cardamom''' is used for two [[herb]]s related to [[ginger]]. Their [[seed]]s are used as a [[spice]]. The two [[species]] are named ''Elettaria'' and ''Amomum''. The seeds grow in a small seedpod. This seedpod is [[triangle|triangular]] in cross-section and has the shape of a [[spindle]]. There is a thin papery outer shell and small black seeds. Elettaria pods are light green in color, Amomum pods are larger and dark brown.

Elettaria is commonly known as ''cardamom'', ''green cardamom'' or ''true cardamom''. It grows from [[India]] to [[Malaysia]].

Amomum is usually called ''black cardamom'', or ''white cardamom''. It grows in [[Asia]] and [[Australia]].

== Uses ==
[[File:Black and green cardamom.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Green and black cardamom]]

Both forms of cardamom are used to add [[flavor]] to both food and drink, as cooking [[spice]]s and as a medicine.
''Elettaria cardamomum'' (the usual type of cardamom) is used as a spice and in medicine; it is also smoked sometimes; it is used as a food plant by the [[larva]] of the [[moth]] ''[[Endoclita|Endoclita hosei]]''.

=== Food and drink ===

Cardamom has a strong taste and an intense smell. Black cardamom has coolness similar to that of [[Mentha|mint]]. It is commonly used in Pakistani cooking. In [[Scandinavia]] it is often used for baking.

Green cardamom is one of the most expensive spices by weight but little is needed to give the flavor. Cardamom is best stored in pod form. Once the seeds are exposed or ground, they quickly lose their flavor. High-quality ground cardamom powder can often be a substitute for the pods. That way, ten pods is about the same quantity as one and a half teaspoons of ground cardamom.

In the [[Middle East]], green cardamom powder is used as a spice for sweet dishes. Traditionally, it is also added as a flavoring to [[coffee]] and [[tea]] there. In Arabic, cardamom is called ''al-Hayl''. In Persian, it is called ''hel''. In Hebrew, it is also called ''hel'' (הל). In Gujarati (a derivative of Sanskrit), it is "Ē-lī-chē".
In some Middle Eastern countries, coffee and cardamom are often ground in a wooden mortar and cooked together in a [[mihbaz]], an oven using wood or gas, to produce mixtures that are as much as forty percent cardamom.

In South Asia, green cardamom is often used in traditional [[Pakistani sweets]] and in ''[[Masala chai|Masala chai (spiced tea)]]''.

Black cardamom is sometimes used in [[garam masala]] for [[curry|curries]]. It is occasionally used as a garnish in [[basmati rice]] and other dishes. It is often referred to as fat cardamom due its size ('Moti Elaichi'). Individual seeds are sometimes chewed, in much the same way as [[chewing-gum]]. It has also been known to be used to make [[gin]]. Cardamom was used to make the spiced [[wine]], [[claret]], in the Middle Ages.

=== In traditional medicine ===
In South Asia, Green cardamom is often used to treat [[infection]]s of the [[tooth|teeth]] and [[gums]]. It is also used against troubles of the [[throat]], congestion of the lungs and pulmonary [[tuberculosis]], inflammation of eyelids and also [[digestive system|digestive]] disorders. It has been used to break up kidney and gall stones, and as an [[antidote]] against the [[poison]] of certain [[snake]] [[bite]]s.

''Amomum'' is used as a spice and as an ingredient in traditional medicine in systems of the [[traditional Chinese medicine]] in [[traditional Chinese medicine|China]], in [[Ayurveda]] in [[India]], [[Japan]], [[Korea]] and [[Vietnam]].

Among other species, varieties and cultivars, ''Amomum villosum'' cultivated in China, [[Laos]] and [[Vietnam]] is used in traditional Chinese medicine to treat stomach-aches, [[constipation]], [[dysentery]], and other digestion problems. "Tsaoko" cardamom ''Amomum tsao-ko'' is cultivated in [[Yunnan]], [[China]] and northwest Vietnam, both for medicinal purposes and as a spice.

The [[supply and demand|demand]] for these herbs has increased since the 1980s. Growing cardamom has become an important source of income for many poor farmers. These people usually live in higher altitudes, sometimes in remote areas, in China, Laos and Vietnam.

Until recently, [[Nepal]] has been the world's largest producer of large cardamom. [[Guatemala]] has become the world's largest producer and exporter of cardamom, with an export total of US$137.2 million for 2007.
== Gallery ==
<gallery>
Image:Cardamom-Dried-Seeds01.jpg | Cardamom fruit and seeds
Image:Elettaria cardamomum Capsules and seeds.jpg|Green cardamom pods and seeds
</gallery>
{{stb}}
{{Herbs & spices}}
[[Category:Zingiberales]]
[[Category:Spices]]
[[Category:Middle Eastern foods]]

Cardamom - Revision history

Prab at 17:23, 13 March 2023