Tropical and subtropical vegetables (2+1)

Importance and utility

• Curry leaf is an important perennial tree vegetable cum spice crop of India. It is an under exploited crop. The leaves are widely used in Indian cookery for flavouring food stuff. The leaves have slightly pungent, bitter and feebly acidic taste and they retain their flavour and other qualities even after drying. Curry leaf is used in many of the Indian Ayurvedic and Unani prescriptions.
• It has many industrial values and medicinal uses. Since the leaves are widely used for foods flavouring in curry preparation. Its leaves, roots and bark are credited with tonic, stomachic and carminative properties. Leaves are reported to cure piles and allay heat of body. The green leaves are said to be eaten raw for treatment of dysentery. External application of pulped bark and root is reported to relive eruptions and bites of poisonous animals. An injection of toasted leaves is used to stop vomiting. The tribal people of India use its ground bark and they rub the bark on the bitten part as a snake bite remedy. The powdered leaf is used to aid in healing of fresh cuts and decoction of the leaves is drunk for dropsy.
• The dried curry leaf powder is a good spice powder for use in the food stuff preparation. It is also being exported. Fresh leaves on a steam distillation under high pressure yield 2.6 % (curry leaf oil) volatile oil which is used as fixative for heavy type of soap and perfume. Rectified leaf oil is deep yellow in colour with a strong spicy odour and pungent clove like taste. A volatile oil a crystalline glucoside ‘Koenigia” from the leaves and ‘Murayam from the flowers are industrial products.