Piper sarmentosum

Piper sarmentosum
A Piper sarmentosum plant
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Magnoliids
Order:	Piperales
Family:	Piperaceae
Genus:	Piper
Species:	P. sarmentosum
Binomial name
Piper sarmentosum Roxb.

Piper sarmentosum is a plant in the Piperaceae family used in many Southeast Asian cuisines. The leaves are often confused with betel, but they lack the intense taste of the betel leaves and are significantly smaller.

Names

There is no "official" English name for it, but it is sometimes called wild betel. It is known as cha plu (ช้าพลู) in Thai, phak i leut or pak eelerd (ຜັກອີ່ເລີດ) in Lao and pokok kadok in Malay. In Vietnam, the local name of Piper lolot – lá lốt – is applied to P. sarmentosum also.

Geographic distribution

P. sarmentosum is found from the tropical areas of Southeast Asia, Northeast India and South China, and as far as the Andaman Islands.

In cuisine

P. sarmentosum leaves are sold in bunches and are usually eaten raw.

• In Thai cuisine, it is used to wrap miang kham, a traditional snack.
• In Laotian cuisine, it is eaten as part of a salad.
• In Malay cuisine it is shredded for ulam, a type of Malay salad.

Traditional medicine

P. sarmentosum leaves are used in traditional Asian medicines.^{[citation needed]} Chemical analysis has shown the leaves contain the antioxidant naringenin. Amides from P. sarmentosum fruit have been shown to have anti-tuberculosis and anti-plasmodial activities.