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Articles: Recipes | Bay Leaf (Biriyani Aaku)
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| | Name | : | Bay Leaf | | | Botanical Name | : | Laurus Nobilis | | | Family | : | Lauraceae |
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 | | | | History: | | | | Bay, or laurel, was famed in ancient Greece and Rome. The term 'baccalaureate,' means “laurel berries” which signifies the completion of a bachelor degree. Romans felt the leaves protected them against thunder and the plague. Later, Italians and the English thought Bay Leaves brought good luck and warded off evil. The bay tree is indigenous to Asia Minor, from where it spread to the Mediterranean and then to other countries with similar climates. According to legend the Delphi oracle chewed bay leaves, or sniffed the smoke of burning leaves to promote her visionary trances. | | | | Physical Study: | | | | The fresh leaves are glossy and dark green on top and lighter at the back. The dried bay leaf is a matte olive green. It is generally used in dried form. Dried leaves should be whole and olive green. Brown leaves will have lost their flavour. Whole leaves are often used in cooking and crushed or ground leaves can be used for extra strength. | | | | Plant Portrayal: | | | | The Bay is a hardy evergreen shrub that grows successfully in Mediterranean climates. In warm areas it can grow as high as 18 m (60 ft). Inconspicuous white flowers arrive in clusters, in May. The fruits are small, red-blue single-seeded berries that later turn black about 12 mm (1/2 in) in size. Propagation is best accomplished with the cuttings from shoots. Leaves can be harvested at any time. Bay Leaves come from the sweet bay or laurel tree. The bay leaf is oval, pointed and smooth, 3” long. Bay Leaves are grown in the Mediterranean region. Taste and Aroma Bay Leaves are pungent and have a sharp, bitter taste. | | | | Storage: | | | | Bay leaves should be kept out of sun light in airtight containers to retain flavour. | | | | Culinary Uses: | | | | Bay leaves are extensively used throughout the world in soups, sauces, stews, daubes, rice dishes etc. These are the appropriate seasoning for fish, meat, poultry and pickles. | | | | Medical Uses: | | | | Bay leaves and berries have been used for their astringent, carminative, diaphoretic, digestive, diuretic, emetic and stomachic properties. | | | | Bay Oil, or Oil of Bays (Oleum Lauri) is used in liniments for bruising and sprains. It was used to keep moths away, owing to the leaf’s lauric acid content, which gives it insecticidal properties. | | | | Other Names: | | | | Apollo’s Bay Leaf, Bay, Bay Laurel, Grecian Laurel, Indian Bay, Laurel, Nobel Laurel, Poet’s Laurel, Roman Laurel, Royal Laurel, Sweet Bay, Sweet Laurel, Wreath Laurel | | | | | French | : | feuille de laurier, laurier franc | | | German | : | Lorbeerblatt | | | Itlaian | : | foglia di alloro, lauro | | | Spanish | : | hoja de laurel | | | Greek | : | dhafni | | | Indian | : | Tej patta | | | Telugu | : | Biriyani Aaku |
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