Description
Kencur
Botanical Name: Kaempferia galanga
An unusual hard to find asian spice used in Indonesian satay and Malaysian perut ikan.
Kencur is a low growing perennial with tuberous roots and almost rounded green spreading leaves: It has short lived white flowers with purple lips.
Originally from India and China used in traditional medicine.
Has antibacterial properties, improves digestion and has diuretic effects.
Fresh rhizomes and young shoots are pickled eaten raw or cooked as vegetables.
The tuberous roots are pounded and are an essential ingredient of Indonesian peanut sauce. In Thai cooking the roots and leaves are used in curry paste for fish and young leaves are eaten raw as a vegetable.
In Malaysia, the leaves of kaempferia galanga (cekur in malaysia) is used in perut ikan a favourite Malaysian dish..
Growing Conditions
Kaempferia galanga is tropical but can be grown in temperate regions, inside or in a glasshouse.They like a fertile well drained soil and lots of water during the growing season but should be kept fairly dry during their dormant time in the winter.
