Greater Indian cardamom, Nepalese cardamom
Amomum subulatum

Family: Zingiberaceae

What it is like

A herb in the ginger family. It grows 1-2 m high. The leaves are 30-60 cm long and 7.5-10.5 cm wide. They are oblong or sword shaped. They are green. The flowers emerge in a dense short spike near the ground. The flowers are yellowish. The base is rounded or wedge shaped and the tip forms a long cup shape. The bracts are pale red and oval. The fruit is a round capsule. It is purple to red-brown and 2-2.5 cm across. It has 10 wavy wings. It contains about 40 small round dark-brown seeds. They are in a soft, sweet smelling pulp.

There are about 150 Amomum species. They are mostly tropical. The seeds contain cineol.

Where it is found

It is a tropical plant. It grows between 1000 and 2000 m altitude in moist places in Nepal. In China it grows in dense forests between 300-1300 m altitude in S China. It is often along watercourses.

Countries/locations it is found in

Asia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, Himalayas, India, Indochina, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Northeastern India, SE Asia, Sikkim, Thailand

How it is used for food

The seeds are used as a flavouring. It is like cardamom but not as sweet. They are only used in savoury recipes. They are used in curries, soups and sausages. They are not used to flavour sweets. The tender shoots are eaten.

It is a cultivated food plant.

Edible parts

Fruit, seeds, spice, flowers, shoots

How it is grown

Plants are grown by splitting the rhizome.

The pods are dried.

Its other names

Local names

Alainchi, Bara elachi, Barra illaichi, Bengal cardamom, Black cardamom, Brown cardamom, Buah pelaga, Elaichi, Hpala-gyi, Illaichi, Ka-ko-la, Kapulaga, Large cardamom, Luk kravan, Melangthi, Mutum khobu telli, Phalazee, Phree langdung, Sikkim cardamom, Sokruno, Taling, Thuo elainchi, Winged cardamom, Xiang dou kou

Synonyms

Cardamomum subulatum (Roxb.) Kuntze;