Cardamom (small)

Hindi Name: Choti Elaichi

Botanical name: Elettaria cardamomum

Family name: Maton Zingiberaceae

Commercial part: Fruit (Capsule)

Among the producers of cardamom Southern India and Sri Lanka have the maximum output along with Guatemala that has become the most important producer today. The Indian cardamom is slightly smaller but more aromatic than other varieties of it. Two South East Asian species, Siam cardamom and round cardamom (Jawa cardamom) from Indonesia have good cardamom flavor and can be taken as substitutes for Indian cardamom.

Cardamom is the dried fruit of a herbaceous perennial and in India it is mainly grown in Kerela, Tamilnadu, Karnataka and on the shady slopes of the Western Ghats. Warm humid climate, loamy soil rich in organic matter, distributed rainfall, special cultivation and processing methods all combines to make Indian cardamom truly unique in aroma, flavor, size and color.

Although cardamom is little valued in Western countries, it is among the oldest spices and is very popular in Sri Lanka, India and Iran and in Saudi Arabia as an essential ingredient to Arab coffee (60% of the world production is exported in Arab countries). Yet not all cardamom is consumed for coffee in Arab countries but is used for cookery. Most of the Arab, indian and Sri Lankan cuisine add cardamom to their non vegetarian and rice preparations like meat, rice dishes, biryanis etc.. Cardamom is also a popular spice in Northern Africa and Eastern Africa, where population is predominantly Arabic whereas in Europe cardamom is unknown, but may appear in some cookie recipes. History also finds a mention of cardamom in the cuisine during the Mughal reign. In Sri Lanka, the pods are added to fiery beef or chicken curries to have the extravagant aroma of cardamom and its flavor .

Indian cardamom has a history as old as human civilization and today is among the most exotic and highly prized spices. Indian cardamom is offered to the international markets in different gradeslike: 'Alleppey Green Extra Bold' (AGEB), 'Alleppey Green Bold' (AGB) and 'Alleppey Green Superior' (AGS).