In South Indian kitchens you are sure to find Pigeon pea cooked almost every day. It is the staple diet served as an accompaniment with another staple diet of the region: Rice. Dal is prepared in most … [Read more...]
Cuban Oregano – Doddapatre – Patharchur
I remember as a child when allergic rash would erupt on the skin, I would crush Cuban Oregano leaves and apply over it and also follow the advice of consuming two or three leaves to get … [Read more...]
Pepper
One of the reasons for a number of invasions on India was for the priced spices like Pepper. They found their way to South India by sea to take away as much of spices as they … [Read more...]
Sorghum – Jower – Jola
Sorghum is known as Jower in India and belongs to Poaceae (grass) family. It is a native of Australia, Africa, and Asia. It is known as Jola in Kannada and is the staple diet of North Karnataka, … [Read more...]
Coconut
Having been bought up in a region surrounded by Coconut palm trees, I cannot imagine a day not seeing the Coconut in various forms or hearing the sound of a Coconut being cracked open. Every … [Read more...]
Cardamom – Elaichi – Yelakki
Cardamom is known as Queen of spices and it is a native of India. It is known as Elaichi in Hindi, Yelakki in Kannada, Ela or Ellka in Sanskrit and the botanical name is Elettaria cardamomum. Cardamom … [Read more...]
Aloe Vera Plant
Aloe Vera known as Lole sara in Kannada was known to us even before it came to the forefront in all health care advertisements. There was an Aloe plant in my maternal grandfather’s house in Kurtakoti … [Read more...]
Mangosteen
Not many of us had heard the existence of Mangosteen fruit, which is a native of South East Asia. Highest producing country is Thailand. I tasted this fruit for the first time in 2008 in Pondicherry … [Read more...]
Brinjal – Eggplant – Aubergine
Brinjal - Eggplant - Aubergine are the most popular name of this vegetable. Eggplant is also known as Aubergine in British English and Brinjal in South and Southeast Asia and South Africa. … [Read more...]
Rice – Paddy – Chawal
Beautiful green blades of paddy swishing to the music of the wind and Egrets dotting the field to feed on insects or the left over seeds is a common scene you encounter as you travel in South and East … [Read more...]
Teak tree
Teak tree is the most precious deciduous tree in India and as you traverse into Western Ghats, you come across these trees gloriously growing on the slopes of the hills. Common names are Indian … [Read more...]
Star Gooseberry Tree – Kiru Nellikayi – Malay gooseberry
Star Gooseberry is known as Kiru Nellikayi in Kannada and was my favourite during school. I would buy them from an old lady selling outside the school campus and smuggle them into the class and … [Read more...]
Stone Flower
Stone Flower is a Lichen and belongs to Parmeliaceae family. In Kannada it is known as Kallu Hoovu, Hindi it is Kalpassi and Pathar Ke Phool. Botanical name is Lichen Parmelia. When visiting … [Read more...]
Tea
Chai as it is known in India is a favorite beverage across the country. If you ever travel in India by train you are sure to be woken by the chaiwala’s (Tea seller) call. Served in earthen ware, paper … [Read more...]
Mint
Mint is known as Pudina in India and is prominently used in Indian cuisines. Botanical name is Mentha longifolia and belong to Lamiaceae family. Mint is derived from the Greek name Mentha. It is … [Read more...]
Mustard
In Indian cuisine, the first spice that is added while preparing a dish to heated Oil is the Mustard Seeds. It is only when they pop that the other ingredients follow one by one. Asia and … [Read more...]
Custard Apple
Custard Apple is also known as Sugar Apple and Sharifa in Hindi. In most of the other Indian languages it is known as Sitaphal. Annona Squamosa is the botanical name belonging to Annonaceae … [Read more...]
Pomelo
Also known as Shaddock, Jabong, Grape Fruit, Chakkotha in Kannada, and Madhukarkati in Sanskrit, Pomelo is the largest citrus fruit belonging to family Rutaceae. Botanical name is Citrus … [Read more...]
Carambola – Star Fruit
Carambola is a fruit native to Indian Sub-continent and South East Asia. This fruit bearing tropical tree is now grown in other parts of the world. When you cut the fruit into roundels, instead of … [Read more...]
Fig Tree
Other common names of Fig Tree are Cluster Fig Tree, Indian Fig Tree or Goolar (Gular) Fig. It is a native of Australia, India, and South-East Asia. Botanical name is Ficus racemosa and belongs to … [Read more...]
