En Passant: On curry and cardamom

I HAVE said it before: I think I am addicted to curry. Thus it was that a couple of weeks ago a pal of mine, ol’ Jimmy, posted on my fishface page a recipe for what it said was “The Best Durban Mutton Curry Recipe Curry Ever”. The illustration was so mouth-watering that I all but drowned in my own spit.

I already had most of the items in the list of ingredients, but duly charged Doris with a short list of those that I hadn’t, and she set forth on an expedition into the wild and woolly depths of our supermarkets, armed with nothing more than a credit card.

On the list was fennel seeds, garam masala and ground elachi, which I’d discovered was also called cardamom.

Well, the garam masala was easy, she found whole cardamom but not ground cardamon, and fennel seeds could only be bought in a 1kg packet, which would have given us enough fennel seeds to flavour enough curry to feed the entire population of Verulam. In the end I got the fennel seeds I wanted from a breyani spice mix.

The curry, I have to tell you, was donders lekker. Was it the best Durban mutton curry ever? I don’t know. I haven’t tasted all the Durban curries ever. But having to find something called “elachi” got me thinking – what is the thing called elachi, also known as cardamon?

Well it’s a plant of the ginger family, native to India, Pakistan, Nepal and Bhutan. Oddly enough, some old German dude, a coffee planter, introduced cardamon into Guatemala in central America back in the very early 1900s, and now that country is the biggest exporter of cardamon in the world.

If you don’t know cardamom, of which there are a number of varieties, the one I got is known as green cardamom, which has a papery-like pod covering black seeds. Don’t ask me how I would describe the flavour, it’s unique, but you’ll find it oddly familiar from your curry memories. It is often included in ordinary curry powder mixes.

But the thing is, see, I’ve discovered that cardamom is said to have an enormous number of health benefits and properties. It has been used in traditional Indian medicine for centuries. Let’s see, among it’s benefits, according to www.sunwarrior.com are:

“Digestion – Cardamom is related to ginger and can be used in much the same way to counteract digestive problems. Use it to combat nausea, acidity, bloating, gas, heartburn, loss of appetite, constipation, and much more.

“Detoxify – This spice helps the body eliminate waste through the kidneys.

“Halitosis – In India they chew cardamom after meals or whenever they need to freshen their breath.

“Diuretic – Part of the reason cardamom is such a good detoxifier is thanks to the diuretic properties. It helps clean out the urinary tract, bladder, and kidneys, removing waste, salt, excess water, toxins, and combating infections too.

“Depression – The science behind the antidepressant qualities of cardamom hasn’t been studied yet, but Ayurvedic [a 5,000-year-old system of natural healing that has its origins in the Vedic culture of India] medicine swears by the tea as a means to fight depression.

“Oral Health – Apart from helping with bad breath, cardamom is used for mouth ulcers and infections of the mouth and throat.

“Cold and Flu – This pungent spice may help prevent and relieve cold and flu symptoms. It’s also used for bronchitis and coughs.

“Cancer – Animal studies are showing promise that cardamom protects against, inhibits growth, and even kills some cancers.

“Blood Pressure – As a diuretic and fiber rich spice, cardamom significantly lowers blood pressure.

“Blood Clots – Cardamom prevents dangerous blood clots by preventing platelet aggregation and the sticking to the artery walls.

“Antioxidant – Many of the vitamins, phytonutrients [whatever they are], and essential oils in cardamom act as antioxidants, cleaning up free radicals and resisting cellular aging.

“Pathogens – The volatile essential oils in cardamom inhibit the growth of viruses, bacteria, fungus, and mold.

“Anti-inflammatory – Like ginger and turmeric, its relatives, cardamom has some anti-inflammatory properties that limit pain and swelling, especially in mucus membranes, the mouth, and throat.

“Hiccups – Cardamom is an anti-spasmodic that can help get rid of hiccups. This also applies to other involuntary muscle spasms, like stomach and intestinal cramps.

“Aphrodisiac – Traditional medicine lists cardamom as a powerful aphrodisiac that can help with erectile dysfunction and impotence.”

You see, I knew there was a reason I liked curry, and I have heard that sandal-wearing health freaks make a cardamom tea. I dunno, I love curry but I think I’ll stick to Joko and Five Roses.