Kulanjan Oil comes from an erect robust perennial herb. The oil is extracted through steam distillation process from the dried part of roots. Well recognized for its anti-microbial, anti-ulcer and other medicinal properties, it is useful in various lipid disorders especially atherosclerosis.
Kulanjan oil is extracted from dried roots of an erect perennial herb Alpinia galangal willed. This oil is well known for its anti-ulcer, anti-microbial and many other medicinal properties. This plant is native to Indonesia but is now grown naturally in many different parts of India. It is grown in southern India and in the Himalayas. The bitter rhizomes of the plant are used in South Asian cuisine for spice. This oil is extracted through the steam distillation process from the dried roots of the herb.
Although you may not have heard of this particular plant the rhizome was very popular in Europe as a spice in the middle Ages. Chaucer mentions it in “The Canterbury Tales” and spells it “galingale”, but it was the lesser galangal, Alpinia officinarum, that was popular in his time as it is more pungent than the Greater one which is Alpinia galangal. There is yet another variety, Keampferia galangal, all of which have rhizomes which resemble ginger and turmeric. They are members of the ginger family.
The Greater galangal grows to a height of 5 feet and the lesser one to around 3 feet. The rhizomes are about three inches long, and have an aromatic smell similar to pine needles when fresh. When dried the smell is more like cinnamon. The root has been used as a spice for more than a thousand years, in both Europe and Asia, although it has long since gone out of favor. It was introduced wither by Greek or Arab physicians. In Russia it is used to flavor vinegar and in a liqueur called “nastoika” and in Lithuania and Estonia it has been used as a medicine and spice for centuries. In India it is still used in medicine, perfumery and brewing. It is believed to be native to China and Indonesia, but grows in South West India and the Eastern Himalayas too.
Common name: Fennel flower, nutmeg flower, Nigella indica, Nigella truncate, Roman coriander black seed, black caraway [1], कलौंजी (Hindu), kalonji, Siyah Dana (Persian), Al-Habba Al-Sauda or AlHabba Al-Barakah (Arabic), Kalvanji (Urdu).
Uses: It has anti-microbial property, anti-ulcer activity, anti tumor activity, anabolic effects and anti-hepatotoxic effects. It is useful in various lipid disorders especially atherosclerosis.
The fruits of the plant (berries) can be used in cooking as a substitute for cardamom seeds and galangal powder goes well with fish and seafood as well as poultry, but you only need a little to flavor a dish.
Kulanjan has also been proven to be effective against heart, liver and kidney damage in animal studies; it even exerted anti-cancer effects in some studies on pancreatic cancer.
This article however concentrates on another important property exerted by this plant; its ability to reduce Potassium bromated induced oxidative stress, something about which we may be concerned, especially if you live in the United States, where this flour improver is still legal.
Health Benefits: It has Anti-microbial Property, Anti-tumor activity, Anti-ulcer activity, Anabolic effects, Anti-hepatotoxic effect, Useful in various lipid disorders especially atherosclerosis.
The rhizome is used against rheumatism, bronchial catarrh, bad breath and ulcers whooping colds in children, throat infections, to control incontinence and fever.
Alpinia species show promise as anti-fungal, hypertensive’s, enhancers of sperm count and motility.
Anti-tumor and anti-dementia effects have been observed in rodents.
Used in dyspepsia, fevers, incontinence of urine and also advocated in diabetes mellitus and said to diminish quantity of urine.
It is used to destroy bad smell in the mouth and from other parts of body.
It is used to improve the voice in throat affections.