Kokam and cambodge
Kokam (Garcinia indica Choisy) is a slender evergreen small tree with drooping branches which attain a pyramidal shape on maturity. It is a dioecious tree growing up to 18 m in height. The fruit is spherical, as large as a small orange, purple throughout, not grooved, having 5-8 seeds compressed in an acid pulp. It is a crop of oriental origin preferring warm and moderately humid tropical climate with a total rainfall range of 2500-5000 mm. It grows under a mean annual temperature of 20-30°C, 60-80% humidity and up to an altitude of 800m from mean sea level. Kokam plants originate and grow wild in the tropical forests of Western Ghats of India. It prefers partial shade, and is more associated with fire protected secondary forests. Extreme acidity is harmful to the crop. The tree grows extensively in the Konkan region of Maharashtra, Goa, coastal areas of Karnataka and Kerala, evergreen forests of Assam, Khasi, Jantia hills, West Bengal and Gujarat. It is a popular tree spice having tremendous potential and in South Indian curries, it is used instead of tamarind, and also has many medicinal properties. The juice of the fruit is used as a mordant and the expressed oil of the seed is the kokam oil of the natives, extensively used to adulterate ghee. The seeds of the fruit yield valuable edible fat known in commerce as kokam butter.
Cambodge (Garcinia cambogia Desr.) is a tropical fruit commonly known as Malabar tamarind and belongs to the family Clusiaceae earlier known as Guttiferae. It is a medium-sized evergreen dioecious tree with rounded crown and horizontal or drooping branches generally attaining a height of 18 m. The fruit is a berry having the size of a small apple, yellow or red, 6-8 grooves forming blunt lobes with tough rind, 6-8 seeds and succulent aril. The fruits may vary in size weighing 50-180 g. It is a native of Western Ghats of Kerala (India) and Malaysia. It grows in the evergreen forests of the Western Ghats in South India and its habitat extends from Konkan southward to Travancore and into the Shola forest of Nilgiris where it can reach an altitude of up to 2000m above mean sea level. In Kerala, it is very popular in the Central Travancore areas and Kerala seems to be one of the centres of origin of cambodges where maximum diversity is seen. It is fairly common and abundant in the forests of western Sri Lanka from sea level to 600m and in Malaysia. It is widely distributed in the evergreen forests of Western Ghats from South Kanara and Mysore to South Kerala up to the low lying reclaimed lands bordering the backwaters. The plant flowers in the hot season and the fruits ripen in the rains. Cambodge fruit has excellent therapeutic value and the dried rind is a popular fruit spice used in cookery as an important ingredient in many dishes for flavouring curries in place of tamarind or lime.
Tags: kokam, cambodge, herbs, spices, cooking