Cinnamomum tamala, Indian bay leaf, also known as tejpat,[2] Malabar leaf, Indian bark,[2] Indian cassia,[2] or malabathrum is a tree within the Lauraceae family which is native to India, Nepal, Bhutan, and China.[2] It can grow up to 20 m (66 ft) tall.[3] It has aromatic leaves which are used for culinary and medicinal purposes. It is thought to have been one of the major sources of the medicinal plant leaves known in classic and medieval times as malabathrum (or malobathrum).
Nomenclature and taxonomy [edit]
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Characteristics [edit]
The leaves, known as tējapattā or tejpatta (तेजपत्ता) in Hindi, Tejpat in Assamese and tamalpatra (तमालपत्र) in Marathi and in original Sanskrit, are used extensively in the cuisines of India, Nepal, and Bhutan, particularly in the Moghul cuisine of North India and Nepal and in Tsheringma herbal tea in Bhutan. It is called Biryani Aaku or Bagharakku in Telugu. They are often labeled as "Indian bay leaves," or just "bay leaf", causing confusion with the leaf from the bay laurel, a tree of Mediterranean origin in a different genus, and the appearance and aroma of the two are quite different. This may lead to confusion when following Indian or Pakistani recipes. Bay laurel leaves are shorter and light to medium green in color, with one large vein down the length of the leaf, while tejpat are about twice as long and wider, usually olive green in color, and with three veins down the length of the leaf. True tejpat leaves impart a strong cassia- or cinnamon-like aroma to dishes, while the bay laurel leaf's aroma is more reminiscent of pine and lemon. Indian grocery stores usually carry true tejpat leaves. Some grocers may only offer Turkish bay leaves,[clarification needed] in regions where true tejpat is unavailable.
Aroma attributes [edit]
The bark is also sometimes used for cooking, although it is regarded as inferior to true cinnamon or cassia[citation needed].
Etymology [edit]
"Malabar" is the name of a region on the west coast of southern India that forms the northern portion of the present-day state of Kerala. The word "Mala" or "Malaya" means "Mountain" in the Tamil and Malayalam languages, as also in Sanskrit. The word "malabathrum" is also thought to have been derived from the Sanskrit tamālapattram (तमालपत्त्रम्), literally meaning "dark-tree leaves."
Toxicology [edit]
Related species [edit]
References [edit]
- ^ "The Plant List: A Working List of all Plant Species".
- ^ a b c d "USDA GRIN Taxonomy".
- ^ Xi-wen Li, Jie Li & Henk van der Werff. "Cinnamomum tamala". Flora of China. Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO & Harvard University Herbaria, Cambridge, MA. Retrieved 29 March 2013.
- ^ a b Ahmed, Aftab et al.; Choudhary, M. Iqbal; Farooq, Afgan; Demirci, Betül; Demirci, Fatih; Can Başer, K. Hüsnü (2000). "Essential oil constituents of the spice Cinnamomum tamala (Ham.) Nees & Eberm.". Flavour and Fragrance Journal 15 (6): 388–390. doi:10.1002/1099-1026(200011/12)15:6<388::AID-FFJ928>3.0.CO;2-F.
- ^ Dighe, V. V. et al.; Gursale, A. A.; Sane, R. T.; Menon, S.; Patel, P. H. (2005). "Quantitative Determination of Eugenol from Cinnamomum tamala Nees and Eberm. Leaf Powder and Polyherbal Formulation Using Reverse Phase Liquid Chromatography". Chromatographia 61 (9 - 10): 443–446. doi:10.1365/s10337-005-0527-6.
- ^ Rao, Chandana Venkateswara et al.; Vijayakumar, M; Sairam, K; Kumar, V (2008). "Antidiarrhoeal activity of the standardised extract of Cinnamomum tamala in experimental rats". Journal of Natural Medicines 62 (4): 396–402. doi:10.1007/s11418-008-0258-8. PMID 18493839.
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