Curry Tree

Curry leaves, an important ingredient in Indian cooking – especially in the south of India and Sri Lanka – come from the curry tree (murraya koenigii). It’s a small tree that grows up to 6 metres tall, but it is as smaller shrub, with tender, juicier leaves that are especially flavoursome. Its species name celebrates the botanist Johann Knighe.

Much used in curries, curry leaves are sometimes called "sweet neem", though they have nothing to do with the actual neem tree. Indeed, the Kannada name means "black neem", since the appearance of the leaves is like those of the sour neem. The Tamil name means "leaf that is utilized to make curry", which is much more like it!

Curry leaves are an excellent source of vitamin A and they offer a good source of calcium, so they are especially valuable in vegetarian cooking.

In Indian cookery, the leaves of curry plants are used raw and fresh in some recipes, while they are quickly fried in oil or butter for others. The dried leaf is also used, although the flavour is much less intense. If you can't get fresh curry laves in your area, try the internet. You don't really want to have to make do with dried.

In her book, "Curry Easy", Madhur Jaffrey suggests that in some recipes you can substitute basil leaves, though she readily acknowledges, that "it doesn't work every time". I personally wouldn't go down this route, but many consider Madhur the goddess of Indian cooking and so her word is law!

It has been suggested that you can try growing your own curry tree and this is worth a go, especially if you find some very fresh curry leaves. You could try rooting some as stem cuttings, and some nurseries may have plants. Ask around. The curry tree is a tropical plant and needs constant heat in order to survive. And remember: the most flavourful leaves come from very hot, very dry conditions. Some expatriate Indian families have been known to grow curry trees in a greenhouse in similar conditions to those employed by people growing illicit marijuana!

In India curry leaves are usually grown in plantations in the south and near the Himalayas and are exported to different parts of the world. Most of the curry leaves we see in Europe come from Kenya, where they are grown by expatriate Tamils.

The herb is renowned in Ayaverdic medicine for its healing properties. Its leaves and bark may be employed as a tonic, stomachic, stimulator and carminative. It will also help in reducing blood sugar if leaves are eaten on an empty stomach, firth thing in the morning. Roasted leaves are said to be especially efficient to stop nausea. Furthermore, juice extracted from curry leaves is said to offer a relief from kidney discomfort and, when applied to the scalp is an Ayerverdic cure for baldness.

The curry tree is one of the most important natural resources in India. Many nutritionalists feel that the liberal use of curry leaves in South Indian food is a cause for the general healthiness of the population – many of whom are poor but well-nourished – and the reason why people in Kerala live on average, ten years longer than those in the north of the country.