Everything about Grains Of Paradise totally explained
» For the similarly-named Luso-Brazilian chili pepper, see Malagueta pepper.
Aframomum melegueta is a species in the ginger family,
Zingiberaceae. It is commonly known as
Guinea pepper,
Melegueta pepper,
alligator pepper and
Guinea grains.
Grains of paradise, a
West African
spice that gives a pungent,
peppery flavor, is obtained from this
plant. It is a
herbaceous perennial plant native to swampy habitats along the West African coast. Its trumpet-shaped, purple
flowers develop into 5 to 7 cm long
pods containing numerous small, reddish-brown
seeds.
The seeds have a pungent, peppery taste due to
aromatic ketones,
for example,
(6)-paradol (systematic name: 1-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-decan-3-one).
Essential oils, which are the dominating flavor components in the closely related
cardamom, occur only in traces.
Grains of paradise are commonly employed in the cooking styles of
West Africa and
North Africa, where they've been traditionally imported via
caravan routes through the
Sahara desert. Grains of paradise became a very fashionable substitute for
black pepper in the 14th and 15th century Europe, especially in northern France, one of the most populous regions in Europe at the time. In the early modern period, the craze for the spice waned and it became more common as a flavorer for sausages and beer. Today it's largely unknown outside of West and North Africa except as flavorers in some
beers,
gins and Norwegian
aquavit.
In West African
folk medicine, grains of paradise are valued for their warming and digestive properties.
A. melegueta has been introduced to the
Caribbean Islands, where it's used as medicine and for religious (
voodoo) rites.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Grains Of Paradise'.
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