Category: Spices

Amchur (Raw Mango powder) or Amchoor is popular spice in Asia. The name comes from Hindi names Aam meaining mango and chur meaning powder. Raw, unripe green mango fruit are sliced and sundried to obtain Amchur. The mango tree, native to South Asia, is of such popularity in India and the Far East. Almost all parts of the tree have some medical use. Use of Amchur has been limited to Indian cookery, where it is used as an acid flavouring ingredient or as a condiment. Amchur adds tanginess to dishes and acts as souring agent.  It is particularly useful as an ingredient in marinades, having the same tenderizing qualities as lemon or lime juice.

Raw mango powder or Amchur is acidic, astringent and antiscorbutic in nature. Raw mango powder has high Vitamin A and Vitamin C content, which attributes to some of the health benefits and medical uses of Amchur.  Health benefits and medicinal uses of raw mango powder or amchur is summarized as under:

Cumin Seeds (scientific name is Cuminum cyminum) is globally popular as spice and used widely due to its distinctive aroma. It is extensively used in Indian Subcontinent and some other Asian, African and Latin American countries, as a condiment or spice.

Mineral Content of Cumin Seeds

Apart from the distinctive aroma, Cumin seeds have high nutrition value. They are a rich source of Iron and Manganese, which are essential for vital functions of human body. 10 gram of Cumin seeds provide around 50% of daily dietary requirement of Iron. Cumin seeds also contain minerals such as Calcium, Potassium, Phosphorus, Zinc and others.

Health benefits of Cumin seeds

Helps in Digestion:  Traditionally, Cumin seeds are known to be of benefit to digestive system. Cumin seeds, contain aromatic organic substance called Cuminaldehyde, which stimulates salivation and thus facilitate primary digestion. According to scientific research, cumin seeds may stimulate secretion of enzymes from Pancreas, which are necessary for assimilation of nutrients from food during digestion.

Turmeric or Indian Saffron or Curcuma longa is rhizomatous plant native to South Asia including India. Turmeric roots provide one of the best known medicinal spices. Roots of turmeric have been used in as food additive, medicine, cosmetics, and fabric dying for more than 2,000 years in Asia.

Turmeric powder is obtained from boiling Turmeric rhizomes for several hours, subsequently drying and grounding.

What is turmeric composed of? Turmeric contains about 6-7% protein, 4-5% fat, 3-4% minerals, 70% carbohydrate and 10-15% moisture. The essential oil from Turmeric is obtained by steam distillation of rhizomes.

Curcumin (diferuloylmethane) (3–4% in Turmeric) is a polyphenol responsible for distinct yellow colour and many of its medicinal properties.

Health benefits and uses of Turmeric

Turmeric has been used since ancient times for treatment of variety of ailments. Turmeric is best recognized as anti-oxidant, hypoglycemic, colorant, and antiseptic. Turmeric leaf oil and turmeric extract can also be used as sunscreens and bio-pesticides.