Caralluma edulis
(Edgew.) Benth. ex Hook. f.
Wikimedia Commons - Marie Portas
Wikimedia Commons - Marie Portas
What to Eat
Edible parts: Leaves, Vegetable, Stems
The leaves and stems are eaten as a vegetable, prepared either cooked or raw.
Where to Find It
It is a subtropical plant. It can grow in arid places. It grows from sea level to 1,300 m above sea level.
Afghanistan, Africa, Asia, East Africa, Eritrea, India, Iran, Mauritania, Middle East, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, United Arab Emirates, UAE, West Africa,
How to Identify
An erect succulent herb. It grows 14-45 cm tall. The branches have 4 grooves. The leaves are opposite and simple. The leaves are 6-13 mm long and narrow. The flowers are in pairs in the axils of scale like bracts. The fruit are dry and have many seeds. They are 9-11 cm long.
Nutrition Score: 32/100
| Part | Moisture | kJ | kcal | Protein | Vit A | Vit C | Iron | Zinc |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leaves | 4.1 | — | — | 17.34 | — | — | 2.3 | — |
How to Grow
The plant can flower and fruit all year round.
Wikipedia
Source ↗Caralluma edulis is a succulent species in the plant family Apocynaceae, native to India and Pakistan. The leaves and stem are eaten in North Africa.
Notes
There are about 56-100 Caralluma species. These are sometimes put in the Asclepiadaceae.
Names & Synonyms
Chang, Chaunga, Pamanai, Pamankai, Pippa, Pippu, Sittu
References (11)
- Al-Sodany, Y. M., et al, 2013, Medicinal Plants in Saudi Arabia: I. Sarrwat Mountains at Taif, KSA. Academic Journal of Plant Sciences 6 (4): 134-145
- Ambasta S.P. (Ed.), 2000, The Useful Plants of India. CSIR India. p 104
- Farooq, S., et al, 2012, Ethnobotanical Studies of the Flora of Tehsil Birmal in South Waziristan Agency, Pakistan. Pak. J. Weed Sci. Res. 18(3): 277-291
- Fl. Brit. India 4:76. 1883
- Grubben, G. J. H. and Denton, O. A. (eds), 2004, Plant Resources of Tropical Africa 2. Vegetables. PROTA, Wageningen, Netherlands. p 163
- Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (1999). Survey of Economic Plants for Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (SEPASAL) database. Published on the Internet; http://www.rbgkew.org.uk/ceb/sepasal/internet [Accessed 28th March 2011]
- Shad, A. A., Shah, H. U., & Bakht, J., 2013, Ethnobotanical Assessment and Nutritive Potential of Wild Food Plants. The Journal of Animal & Plant Sciences, 23(1) pp. 92-97
- Sher, H. et al, 2011, Ethnobotanical and Economic Observations of Some Plant Resources from the Northern Parts of Pakistan. Ethnobotany research & Applications 9:027-041
- Sher, Z., Hussain, F., & Ibrar, M., 2014, Traditional knowledge on plant resources of Ashezai and Salarzai Valleys, District Buner, Pakistan. African Journal of Plant Science. Vol. 8(1), pp. 42-53, January 2014
- Ullah, I, et al, 2017, Analysis of nutrients and minerals of some wild edible plants. International Journal of Fauna and Biological Studies. 4(6):35-39
- Wiersema, J. H. & Leon, B., 2013, World Economic Plants. A Standard Reference CRC Press. 2nd Ed. p 141
