Tsaoko, Yunnan cardamon
Amomum tsao-ko

Family: Zingiberaceae

What it is like

A ginger family herb that has an aroma. It keeps growing from year to year. It grows 2.5 m tall. It has a stout rhizome 8 cm long and 3 cm across. The aerial stalk has 11-14 leaves with leaf sheaths. The leaves are broadly sword shaped. They are 40-55 cm long by 15-20 cm wide. The flowers are in a crowded spike near the ground arising from the rhizome. The flowers are pale orange. They are in a head without a stalk and it is 13-28 cm long. The fruit is a red to purple capsule. It is oval and 2.5-4.5 cm long by 2 cm across. There are many light grey seeds. They are angled and have an aroma.

Where it is found

It is a tropical plant. It grows in sparse forests between 1,100-1,800 m above sea level in Yunnan in southern China.

Countries/locations it is found in

Asia, China, Indochina, Laos, SE Asia, Vietnam

How it is used for food

The fruit are used to flavour chicken soup.

Edible parts

Fruit - spice

How it is grown

Its other names

Local names

Red cardamom

Synonyms

Amomum hongtsaoko C. F. Liang & D. Fang;