turmeric

BOTANICAL NAME

Curcuma longa

AKA

turmeric
Indian saffron

Turmeric is an underground rhizome that looks rather similar to ginger. It has ginger's same gnarly tuber shape but its skin is darker and more golden. Its flesh is also a much richer and deep yellow-orange color. It is part of the family Zingiberaceae which, not surprisingly, also includes ginger and cardamom.

Like many of the other plants in the family, turmeric can be found in tropical climes, particularly India, where it grows natively. Though there are a numerous varieties of Curcuma species, C. longa is found almost exclusively in South India. The turmeric-growing South Indian city Erode is the largest producer and is known also as "Yellow City" or "Turmeric City."

Turmeric is harvested annually. The rhizomes collected are used either for consumption or for propagation for the following season's crop. The rhizomes marked for sale are boiled, dried and then processed, most-often into a yellow-golden powder.

The spice is the principal ingredient in commercial curry, but it is also used as an all natural coloring agent. It is used in food industries to color cheese, butter and other foods; and though it is also used to color the robes of Buddhist monks and the traditionally South Asian draped garments called saris, it isn't an ideal fabric dye because it isn't colorfast.