''Pandanus amaryllifolius'' is a tropical plant in the ''
Pandanus
''Pandanus'' is a genus of monocots with some 750 accepted species. They are palm-like, dioecious trees and shrubs native to the Old World tropics and subtropics. The greatest number of species are found in Madagascar and Malaysia. Common names ...
'' (screwpine)
genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...
, which is commonly known as pandan (; ). It has fragrant leaves which are used widely for flavouring in the cuisines of
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consistin ...
and
South Asia
South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.;;;;;;;; ...
.
Occurrence and habitat
''Pandanus amaryllifolius'' is a true
cultigen
A cultigen () or cultivated plant is a plant that has been deliberately altered or selected by humans; it is the result of artificial selection. These plants, for the most part, have commercial value in horticulture, agriculture or forestry. Beca ...
, and is believed to have been domesticated in ancient times. It is sterile and can only reproduce vegetatively through suckers or cuttings. It was first described from specimens from the
Maluku Islands
The Maluku Islands (; Indonesian: ''Kepulauan Maluku'') or the Moluccas () are an archipelago in the east of Indonesia. Tectonically they are located on the Halmahera Plate within the Molucca Sea Collision Zone. Geographically they are located eas ...
, and the rare presence of male flowers in these specimens may indicate that it is the origin of the species. However, as no other wild specimens have been found, this is still conjecture. The plant is grown widely throughout Southeast Asia and South Asia.
Botanical features
The characteristic aroma of pandan is caused by the
aroma compound
An aroma compound, also known as an odorant, aroma, fragrance or flavoring, is a chemical compound that has a smell or odor. For an individual chemical or class of chemical compounds to impart a smell or fragrance, it must be sufficiently vo ...
2-acetyl-1-pyrroline
2-Acetyl-1-pyrroline (2AP) is an aroma compound and flavor that gives freshly baked bread, jasmine rice and basmati rice, the spice ''pandan'' (''Pandanus amaryllifolius''), and ''bread flowers'' (''Vallaris'' ''glabra'') their customary smell. Ma ...
, found in the lower epidermal papillae; the compound gives
white bread
White bread typically refers to breads made from wheat flour from which the bran and the germ layers have been removed from the whole wheatberry as part of the flour grinding or milling process, producing a light-colored flour. This milling pro ...
,
jasmine rice
Jasmine rice ( th, ข้าวหอมมะลิ; ; ) is a long-grain variety of fragrant rice (also known as aromatic rice). Its fragrance, reminiscent of ''pandan'' (''Pandanus amaryllifolius'') and popcorn, results from the rice plant's na ...
, and
basmati rice
Basmati, , is a variety of long, slender-grained aromatic rice which is traditionally grown in India, Pakistan, and Nepal. (as well as bread flowers ''
Vallaris
''Vallaris'' is a genus of plants in the family Apocynaceae first described as a genus in 1768. It is native to China, the Indian Subcontinent, and Southeast Asia.
;Species
* ''Vallaris glabra'' (L.) Kuntze – bread flower, ''kesidang'' (Malay ...
glabra'') their typical smell. Though the plant is unknown in the wild, it is widely cultivated. It is an upright, green plant with fan-shaped sprays of long, narrow, blade-like leaves and woody
aerial root
Aerial roots are roots above the ground. They are almost always adventitious. They are found in diverse plant species, including epiphytes such as orchids (''Orchidaceae''), tropical coastal swamp trees such as mangroves, banyan figs ('' F ...
s. The plant is sterile, with flowers only growing very rarely, and is propagated by cuttings.
Use
Culinary
![Buko Pandan Salad from Beach House in -CostaPacifica](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/24/Buko_Pandan_Salad_from_Beach_House_in_-CostaPacifica._-food_-baler_-aurora_-philippines_-travel.jpg)
The
taste
The gustatory system or sense of taste is the sensory system that is partially responsible for the perception of taste (flavor). Taste is the perception produced or stimulated when a substance in the mouth reacts chemically with taste receptor ...
of pandan has been described as floral,
sweet
Sweetness is a basic taste most commonly perceived when eating foods rich in sugars. Sweet tastes are generally regarded as pleasurable. In addition to sugars like sucrose, many other chemical compounds are sweet, including aldehydes, ketones ...
,
grassy, as well as like
vanilla
Vanilla is a spice derived from orchids of the genus ''Vanilla (genus), Vanilla'', primarily obtained from pods of the Mexican species, flat-leaved vanilla (''Vanilla planifolia, V. planifolia'').
Pollination is required to make the p ...
. It often has a subtle flavor or scent.
In
Singapore
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...
,
Malaysia
Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...
,
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
and the
Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
, it is commonly called ''pandan'' or ''pandan wangi'' (fragrant pandan). The green juice acquired from its leaf is used extensively in
Malaysian cuisine
Malaysian cuisine consists of cooking traditions and practices found in Malaysia, and reflects the multi-ethnic makeup of its population. The vast majority of Malaysia's population can roughly be divided among three major ethnic groups: Mala ...
and
Indonesian cuisine
Indonesian cuisine is a collection of various regional culinary traditions that formed the archipelagic nation of Indonesia. There are a wide variety of recipes and cuisines in part because Indonesia is composed of approximately 6,000 popula ...
as green
food colouring
Food coloring, or color additive, is any dye, pigment, or substance that imparts color when it is added to food or drink. They come in many forms consisting of liquids, powders, gels, and pastes. Food coloring is used in both commercial food ...
and flavouring agents that gave pleasant aroma for ''
kue
Kue is an Indonesian bite-sized snack or dessert food. Kue is a fairly broad term in Indonesian to describe a wide variety of snacks including cakes, cookies, fritters, pies, scones, and patisserie. Kue are made from a variety of ingredients in ...
'', a tapioca, flour or glutinous rice-based traditional cakes; including ''
klepon
''Klepon'' (pronounced ''Klē-pon''), or ''kelepon'', is a snack of sweet rice cake balls filled with molten palm sugar and coated in grated coconut. Of Javanese origin, the green-coloured glutinous rice balls are one of the popular traditiona ...
'', ''
kue putu
''Kue putu'' or ''putu bambu'' is an Indonesian ''kue''. It is made of rice flour called ''suji'' and coloured green with pandan leaves, filled with palm sugar, steamed in bamboo tubes (hence the name), and served with desiccated coconut. This ...
'', ''
dadar gulung
''Dadar gulung'' (lit: "rolled pancake/omelette") is a popular traditional ''kue'' (traditional snack) of sweet coconut pancake. It is often described as an Indonesian coconut pancake
''Dadar gulung'' is one of the popular snacks in Indonesia ...
'', ''
lapis legit
Spekkoek (kue lapis legit or spekuk in Indonesian) is a type of Indonesian layer cake. It was developed during colonial times in the Dutch East Indies. The firm-textured cake is an Indo (Dutch-Indonesian) version of the European multi-layered s ...
'',
pandan cake
Pandan cake is a light, fluffy, green-coloured sponge cake flavoured with the juices of ''Pandanus amaryllifolius'' leaves.
It is also known as pandan chiffon. The cake is popular in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Thai ...
,
buko pandan
Buko salad, usually anglicized as young coconut salad, is a Filipino fruit salad dessert made from strips of fresh young coconut (''buko'') with sweetened milk or cream and various other ingredients. It is one of the most popular and ubiquitous F ...
salad, and
buko pandan cake
Buko pandan cake, also known as pandan macapuno cake or coconut pandan cake, is a Filipino chiffon or sponge cake (''mamón'') flavored with extracts from boiled pandan leaves and frosted with cream with young coconut strips and/or macapuno as ...
. The tied knot of bruised pandan leaf is also added into fragrant
coconut rice
Coconut rice is a dish prepared by soaking white rice in coconut milk or cooking it with coconut flakes. As both the coconut and the rice-plant are commonly found in the tropics all-around the world, coconut rice too is found in many cultures th ...
to enhance the aroma.
In
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
, it is called ''rampé'' and it is grown almost in every household. Most of the Sri Lankan dishes use these leaves for aroma along with curry leaves. In India it is called '' annapurna'' leaves; In Odisha annapurna leaves are used to lend aroma to rice and pithas, in
Bangladesh
Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...
, it is called ''pulao pata'' (পোলাও পাতা); and in the Maldives, it is called ''ran’baa'' along with the other variety of pandan there (''
Pandanus fascicularis
''Pandanus odorifer'' is an aromatic monocot species of plant in the family Pandanaceae, native to Polynesia, Australia, South Asia (Andaman Islands), and the Philippines, and is also found wild in southern India and Burma. It is commonly known a ...
''), and is used to enhance the flavor of ''
pulao'', ''
biryani
Biryani () is a mixed rice dish originating among the Muslims of the Indian subcontinent. It is made with Indian spices, rice, and usually some type of meat (chicken, beef, goat, lamb, prawn, fish) or in some cases without any meat, and so ...
'', and sweet coconut rice pudding, or ''payesh'' if basmati rice is not used. It acts as a cheap substitute for basmati fragrance, as one can use normal, nonfragrant rice and with pandan the dish tastes and smells like basmati is used.
The leaves are used either fresh or dried, and are commercially available in frozen form in
Asian grocery stores of nations where the plant does not grow. They have a nutty, botanical fragrance that is used as a flavor enhancer in many Asian cuisines, especially in
rice
Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima
''Oryza glaberrima'', commonly known as African rice, is one of the two domesticated rice species. It was first domesticated and grown i ...
dishes, desserts, and cakes.
The leaves are sometimes steeped in
coconut milk
Coconut milk is an opaque, milky-white liquid extracted from the grated pulp of mature coconuts. The opacity and rich taste of coconut milk are due to its high oil content, most of which is saturated fat. Coconut milk is a traditional food i ...
, which is then added to the dish. They may be tied in a bunch and cooked with the food. They may be woven into a basket which is used as a pot for cooking rice. Pandan chicken, (Thai: ไก่ห่อใบเตย, ''kai ho bai toei''), is a dish of chicken parts wrapped in pandan leaves and fried. The leaves are also used as a flavoring for desserts such as
pandan cake
Pandan cake is a light, fluffy, green-coloured sponge cake flavoured with the juices of ''Pandanus amaryllifolius'' leaves.
It is also known as pandan chiffon. The cake is popular in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Thai ...
and sweet beverages. Filipino cuisine uses pandan as a flavoring in some
coconut milk
Coconut milk is an opaque, milky-white liquid extracted from the grated pulp of mature coconuts. The opacity and rich taste of coconut milk are due to its high oil content, most of which is saturated fat. Coconut milk is a traditional food i ...
-based dishes as well as desserts like ''
buko pandan
Buko salad, usually anglicized as young coconut salad, is a Filipino fruit salad dessert made from strips of fresh young coconut (''buko'') with sweetened milk or cream and various other ingredients. It is one of the most popular and ubiquitous F ...
''. It is also used widely in rice-based pastries such as
''suman'' and numerous sweet drinks and desserts.
Pandan leaves and their extract have also been used as a
food preservative
Food preservation includes processes that make food more resistant to microorganism growth and slow the oxidation of fats. This slows down the decomposition and rancidification process. Food preservation may also include processes that inhibit ...
due to their
antibacterial
An antibiotic is a type of antimicrobial substance active against bacteria. It is the most important type of antibacterial agent for fighting bacterial infections, and antibiotic medications are widely used in the treatment and prevention of ...
and
antifungal
An antifungal medication, also known as an antimycotic medication, is a pharmaceutical fungicide or fungistatic used to treat and prevent mycosis such as athlete's foot, ringworm, candidiasis (thrush), serious systemic infections such as crypto ...
properties (particularly against
mold
A mold () or mould () is one of the structures certain fungus, fungi can form. The dust-like, colored appearance of molds is due to the formation of Spore#Fungi, spores containing Secondary metabolite#Fungal secondary metabolites, fungal seco ...
).
In October 2017,
celebrity chef
A celebrity chef is a kitchen chef who has become a celebrity. Today, chefs often become celebrities by presenting cookery advice and demonstrations, usually through the media of television and radio, or in printed publications. While television ...
Nigella Lawson
Nigella Lucy Lawson (born 6 January 1960) is an English food writer and television cook.
She attended Godolphin and Latymer School, London. After graduating from the University of Oxford, where she was a member of Lady Margaret Hall, Lawson ...
predicted that pandan would displace popular
matcha
is finely ground powder of specially grown and processed green tea leaves, traditionally consumed in East Asia. The green tea plants used for matcha are shade-grown for three to four weeks before harvest; the stems and veins are removed during ...
and
avocado toast
Avocado toast is a type of open sandwich consisting of toast with mashed avocado, and usually salt, black pepper, and sometimes citrus juice. Ingredients added to enhance the flavor include olive oil, hummus, red pepper flakes, feta, dukkah and ...
. While the plant’s visibility on social networks, especially in the United Kingdom, increased in 2017, there was also pushback against reports that described Lawson as “discovering” a “new” ingredient, as pandan has been widely used in Asia for a long time.
Bottled pandan extract is available in shops, and often contains green
food coloring
Food coloring, or color additive, is any dye, pigment, or substance that imparts color when it is added to food or drink. They come in many forms consisting of liquids, powders, gels, and pastes. Food coloring is used in both commercial food ...
.
Fragrance and traditional medicine
The leaves are used in the perfume industry and
traditional medicine
Traditional medicine (also known as indigenous medicine or folk medicine) comprises medical aspects of traditional knowledge that developed over generations within the folk beliefs of various societies, including indigenous peoples, before the ...
. ''P. amaryllifolius'' essence may substitute for
vanilla essence
Vanilla extract is a Solution (chemistry), solution made by maceration (food), macerating and percolation, percolating vanilla, vanilla pods in a solution of ethanol and water. It is considered an essential ingredient in many Western desserts, es ...
.
Studies have established repellent activity of ''P. amaryllifolius'' against American cockroaches (''Periplaneta americana'' L.).
Air freshener
The leaves possess a pleasant aroma and can be used as natural air fresheners. In Thailand, cab drivers sometimes use pandan for this purpose.
See also
*
Domesticated plants and animals of Austronesia
One of the major Early human migrations, human migration events was the Maritime history, maritime Austronesian expansion, settlement of Austronesia, the islands of the Indo-Pacific by the Austronesian peoples, believed to have started from at l ...
References
Further reading
* Li J. and Ho S.H. (2003)
Pandan leaves (''Pandanus amaryllifolius'' Roxb.) as a Natural Cockroach Repellent ''Proceedings of the 9th National Undergraduate Research Opportunities Programme'' (2003-09-13).
* Van Wyk, Ben-Erik (2005). ''Food Plants of the World''. Portland, Oregon: Timber Press, Inc.
*
External links
{{Taxonbar, from=Q311090
amaryllifolius
Spices
Asian cuisine
Taxa named by William Roxburgh