The Black Gold of Nepal| Nepali Alainchi

The botanical name of Black cardamom is Amomum subulatum. It is a perennial herbaceous plant belonging to the ginger family. If you were to travel in the hilly regions of Nepal, there are high chances you will find it in the backyard of the local people. Black cardamom is one of the most expensive spices in the world and has some amazing titles as well. It is called the “Queen of Spices” and “Black gold” respectively.

This is a beautiful plant with splendid leaves and flowers.

When harvested, the black cardamom is dark pink in color. It then needs drying.

The drying is done in two ways: 1)Over the traditional Nepalese fire oven and 2) Drying in the sun. The oven-dried or smoked black cardamom is highly preferred in preparing spices, especially in Arab countries.

Black cardamom physical features:

Black Cardamom is dark brown in color, roughly one inch in length. The pod is dried, and tough and the seeds inside are small, sticky, and black in color. Black cardamom has a pungent aroma with a citrus and eucalyptus flavor.

Flavor: It has a note of resin, camphor, and menthol. It is considered to be a warming spice and is usually added to the black pepper, and mace category.

Black cardamom health benefits:

Black cardamom is more than a spice and a mouth freshener. It has many medicinal benefits as well and is widely used in Ayurvedic, Unani, and Chinese medicines for ages.

Health benefits:

1. It is a natural antioxidant, antimicrobial, and analgesic. It also has anti-inflammatory properties.
2. It may be able to treat Ischemic heart disease.
3. It can cure indigestion and nausea
4. It reduces insulin resistance
5. It can also be used to treat sore throat.
6. It also improves liver health
7. It has been found to have a lipid-lowering effect on the body because of its polyphenolic content.
8. Gargling with an infusion of black cardamom can treat oral diseases
9. Black cardamom paste can be used to cure itching diseases like Eczema.
10. The essential oil of black cardamom can be used as a pain reliever and to treat colds and sinusitis.
11. In Ayurveda, it has also been mentioned as a cure for snakebites.

Beauty benefits:

1. Black cardamom promotes healthy blood circulation, improving skin health
2. It has skin-lightening properties.
3. The essential oil of black cardamom is very good for treating skin allergies
4. Since it is a natural antioxidant, black cardamom keeps the scalp healthy and provides it with nourishment
5. It also prevents and treats itchy scalp
6. It also adds glow to the skin

How to use black cardamom in your daily life?

1. As a spice: This doesn’t need any elaboration. It is already an integral part of our garam masala and biryani masala.
2. As a tisane: As a tisane, black cardamom is wonderful. I would recommend the sundried black cardamom for this if you are not a fan of the smoky flavor. You can pair it up with cinnamon or lemongrass or both!
3. As an essential oil: Well, as it is mentioned above, the essential oil of black cardamom is useful for both beauty and the body. If you are using the essential oil for massaging, we would recommend adding it to a base oil like mustard or sesame. If you are using it on your face, maybe use it as a part of your facemask. Based on the purity of essential oil, you can always vary the content.
4. As a mouth freshener: This needs no explanation. Just chew 2 seeds and that should be enough

The Black cardamom economy

I need not mention how important black cardamom is as a spice. Black cardamon is the third most expensive spice in the world after Saffron and Vanilla. That’s why it is one of the major cash crops in Nepal.

Black cardamom is the third most expensive spice in the world after Saffron and Vanilla

Did you know that Nepal is one of the top 5 producers of black cardamom in the world? Nepal is home to 14 different varieties of black cardamom.

It is the largest producer of large cardamom covering 55 percent of the average annual world production (MoF, 2020; ITC and GoN, 2016).

So next time when you are in the store and buying black cardamom for your perfect biryani, well, try and look for the Nepalese variety because it is one of the best quality black cardamoms that you will find.

Have any interesting facts to share about black cardamom? Do share it in the comments section.

References:

• REVIEW ON STATUS OF LARGE CARDAMOM (AMOMUM SUBULATUM ROXB.)
  PRODUCTION AND MARKETING IN NEPAL
• A REVIEW ON STATUS OF PRODUCTION OF LARGE CARDAMOM IN NEPAL AND ITS
• MARKETING IN NATIONAL AND GLOBAL SCENARIO – 1Abishkar Khatiwada, 1Aadesh Subedi, 1Rashmi Dangol
• Easyayurveda.com
• Newnepaldream.blogspot.com
• Cardamom powder supplementation prevents obesity, improves glucose intolerance, inflammation and oxidative stress in liver of high carbohydrate high fat diet induced obese rats
• Md Mizanur Rahman,1 Mohammad Nazmul Alam,1 Anayt Ulla,1 Farzana Akther Sumi,1 Nusrat Subhan,1 Trisha Khan,1 Bishwajit Sikder,1 Hemayet Hossain,2 Hasan Mahmud Reza,1 and Md Ashraful Alamcorresponding author1
• plants.ces.ncsu.edu
• nutritionvistas.com
• BIOLOGICAL AND THERAPEUTIC USES OF AMOMUM SUBULATUM ROXB: A REVIEW