Ajwain

Ammi majus is known as bishop's weed.

Ground-elder is also known as bishop's weed.

Ajwain (botanical name of Trachyspermum copticum as from the ITIS Standard Report Page) (also known as Ajowan caraway, carom seeds or mistakenly as bishop's weed), is an uncommon spice except in certain areas of Asia.

Characteristics

It is the small seed-like fruit similar to that of the Bishop's Weed (Ammi majus) plant, egg-shaped and grayish in colour. The plant has a similarity to parsley. Because of their seed-like appearance, the fruit pods are sometimes called ajwain seeds or mistakenly as bishop's weed (Ammi majus) seeds (Botanical Synonyms for Ajwain, which are no longer accepted by ITIS are, Ammi copticum, Carum copticum, Trachyspermum ammi).

Etymology

Ajwain is often confused with lovage seed; even some dictionaries mistakenly state that ajwain comes from the lovage plant. In Hindi it is called as Ajwain (अजवायन). Ajwain is also called 'Owa (ओवा)' in Marathi, "vaamu" or Oma in Telugu, "omam" (ஓமம்) in Tamil, "ajwana" in Kannada, "ajmo" (અજમો) in Gujarati, "jowan" in Bengali, "jwanno" in Nepali, "asamodagam" in Singhalese and "xiang zhu la jiao" (香著辣椒) in Chinese.

Ajwain seeds

Flavour and aroma

Raw ajwain smells almost exactly like thyme because it also contains thymol, but is more aromatic and less subtle in taste, as well as slightly bitter and pungent. It tastes like thyme or caraway, only stronger. Even a small amount of raw ajwain will completely dominate the flavor of a dish.

In Indian cuisine, ajwain is almost never used raw, but either dry-roasted or fried in ghee or oil. This develops a much more subtle and complex aroma, somewhat similar to caraway but "brighter". Among other things, it is used for making a type of paratha, called 'ajwain ka paratha'.

History

Ajwain originated in the Middle East, possibly in Egypt. It is now primarily grown and used in the Indian Subcontinent, but also in Iran, Egypt and Afghanistan. It is sometimes used as an ingredient in berbere, a spice mixture favored in Eritrea and Ethiopia.

In India, the major Ajwain producing states are Rajasthan and Gujarat, where Rajasthan produces about 90% of India's total production.

Omam (Ajwain) is used to make a special food called the 'omapodi'. It is also mixed in several snacks of north and south India. Omam is used to cure digestive problems in children and adults. Omam is also mentioned in ancient Tamil literatures.

Uses

Medicinal uses

It is also traditionally known as a digestive aid, relieves abdominal discomfort due to indigestion and antiseptic

External links

• Ajwain from The Encyclopedia of Spices
• Ajwain page from Gernot Katzer's Spice Pages
• Trachyspermum copticum ITIS Reference for Ajowan Caraway

Further reading

Hill, Tony. (2004) "Ajwain" in The Contemporary Encyclopedia of Herbs and Spices: Seasonings for the Global Kitchen. Wiley. p. 21-23. ISBN 978-0471214236.