Alleppey Green Cardamom is one of the oldest, most popular and sought after cardamom from India. It is the physiologically mature unripened and dried fruit of the perennial plant Elettaria cardamomum Var Maton of the Mysore cultivars grown in the ancient Travancore.
Alleppey Green is a grade name that asserts quality. The cardamom in this grade is of certain unique quality. This grade is unique in its colour, size, chemical constituents and oil content.
It is cultivated in the long stretch of the Western Ghats and falling within the districts of Tirunelveli, Dindugul, Coimbatore, Nilgiris and Theni districts of the State of Tamil Nadu and the districts of Idukki, Palghat, Wayanad and Trivandrum of the State of Kerala.
Alleppey Green cardamom is kiln dried, having a reasonably uniform shade of green colour and 3 cornered with ribbed appearance. Enclosed in the fruit pods are, dry, brown, aromatic seeds, which are slightly pungent to taste.
Scientific Name of Allepey Green Cardamom is Elettaria cardamomum Var Maton and its Biological classification is as given below.
Kingdom : Plantae
Division : Magnoliphyta
Class : Liliopsida
Order : Zingiberales
Family : Zingiberaceae
Genus : Elettaria
Species : cardamomum
Cardamom-“Ela” has been used as a spice in India since pre historic times. Cardamom is one of the most exotic, flamboyant and highly priced species of spice, which has an origin in the Western Ghats and a history as old as human civilization. It formed part of the spice trade with ancient Roman, Arabs and Europeans later.
In 18th century, Travancore kingdom had monopoly over trade and export of cardamom in an understanding with the British Raj. This made all produce of cardamom in Travancore to be sold solely to the state depot at Alleppey, which was the main trading port. This cardamom variety is called Alleppey cardamom not because it's grown in Alleppey rather it's because it was the main depot through which this cardamom was processed.
The genus Elettaria consists of about six species only. In South India there exist mainly three varieties, Malabar(Coorg Green Cardamom), Mysore (the variety that constitutes Alleppey Green) and Vazhukka (a hybrid of the above varieties).
The volatile oil in the seeds of Alleppey Green is much higher in percentage (7.5-11.3) when compared to the other grades. The commercially distilled oil from Alleppey Green has a penetrating, slightly irritating, cineolic, cooling camphoraceous, disinfectant warm, spicy, sweet, aromatic, fruity initial impact.
The enchanting aroma of green cardamom can elevate the taste of anything; from your morning cup of tea to a sumptuous main course dish such as biryani. This versatile condiment has been a staple in many global cuisines. Green elaichi can be added to desserts like kheer, payasam, laddoos, barfis and even halwas. You can even make amazing elaichi flavoured cakes, breads, souffles, etc
GI Tag Registration Date : 28 March 2008
GI Tag Number : 72
Certificate Number : 56
Geographical Area : Tamil Nadu, Kerala
Special Cover Release Date : 28 October 2021
Cancellation : Theni 625 531
Type : GI Tag Cover
Cover Identification Number : TN/38/2021
Each cover is numbered. Total 2000 covers are issued.
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Enlarged View of Cancellation
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