Caraway

Carum carvi

COMMON NAMES

• Common Caraway
• Caraway
• Caraway Seed
• Roman Cumin

Caraway - a biennial with an erect, furrowed, branching stem growing to 1 1/2-2 feet high. Feathery leaves of caraway grow from the stem in opposite pairs or in threes. The branches of the stems end in clusters of tiny white flowers (June-July); the flower heads resemble those of carrots in bloom. The seeds are long, ribbed, and brownish.

One of the most popular herbs today, caraway has long been prized for the excellence of its aromatic dried seeds (actually fruits) as a condiment and an aid to digestion. Caraway gives rye bread and various cheeses their characteristic flavors and is the base for a well-known digestive liqueur, Kummel (German for "caraway"). Bakers scatter the seeds over cakes, and cooks often add them to cabbage and sauerkraut not just for taste but for their gas-relieving properties. Caraway oil, extracted from the seeds, used to be given in very small amounts to relieve gassy indigestion or colic. In this use it is effective, but according to some sources, heavy doses may cause liver damage.

Like so many other favorite herbs, caraway acquired its own folklore. In Europe, popular belief held that caraway would prevent the theft of any item that contained it. This virtue gave caraway power as a love potion: feed your lover caraway and he or she cannot be stolen from you. In the same spirit, country people fed caraway to their chickens, geese, and pigeons to keep them from straying. Some pigeon keepers still place caraway dough in their lofts to keep the flock intact.

PARTS USED

Seeds, essential oil.

USES

Caraway is similar in action to anise and fennel. Being antispasmodic and possessing carminative properties, the seeds of caraway soothe the digestive tract, acting directly on the intestinal muscles to relieve colic and cramps as well as all types of bloating and flatulence. They sweeten the breath, improve appetite, counter heart irregularity caused by excess digestive gas, and ease menstrual cramps. In addition, the seeds are diuretic, expectorant, and tonic, and are frequently used in bronchitis and cough remedies, especially those for children. Caraway has a reputation for increasing breast-milk production. The diluted essential oil is a useful remedy for scabies.
Caraway will stimulate the appetite. Its astringency will help in the treatment of diarrhea as well as in laryngitis as a gargle.
Culinary uses - Add fresh young caraway leaves to soups, stews, and salads. Try cooking the older leaves like spinach, but be prepared for a stronger, spicier flavor, like that of the seeds.
Cook the roots and serve them as you would carrots or parsnips.
Caraway seeds are widely used to flavor and season rye breads, cakes (they are a fine substitute for poppy seeds in old standbys such as seed cake), biscuits, cheeses, omelets, pasta, soups, salad dressing, applesauce, rice, and seafood. Vegetable dishes using beets, carrots, potatoes, green beans, cauliflower, cucumber, onions, zucchini, and turnips often call for the addition of caraway seeds. Coleslaw and sauerkraut, and indeed all cabbage dishes, are incomplete without caraway seeds. (If you don't like the smell of cooking cabbage, put a 5 ml (1 teaspoon) of caraway seeds in a muslin bag and boil it with the cabbage.)
The essential oil from caraway seeds is used commercially to flavor pickles; marinades, preserved meats, confectionery, condiments, candy, ice cream, and alcoholic beverages such as aquavit and kümmel.

HABITAT AND CULTIVATION

Caraway grows wild in Europe, North Africa, and Asia. Caraway. Caraway is cultivated in Europe, Russia, North Africa, and the US, and the seeds are harvested ripe in late summer.
Caraway grows best in well-tilled, moderately light clay soil that is rich in humus. Tolerated pH range is 4.8 to 7.8.
Caraway needs full sunlight and requires additional watering during dry spells.
Sow seeds directly in the garden in early spring, as soon as the soil can be worked. Seeds are slow to germinate. (Putting seeds in the freezer for a few days before planting may improve germination.)
Plant seeds about 6 mm (1/4 inch) deep. Seedlings usually emerge in 8 to 12 days.
Space plants 20 cm (8 inches) apart. (You only need a few plants for a good supply of seeds.)
Although caraway self-seeds, the resulting plants may be rather weedy.
Susceptible to crown rot, and to infestations of aphids and carrot weevils.
Growing in containers - The annual variety of caraway adapts well to container growing if the location is bright and sunny. Sow seed directly into the container in a standard potting soil. Select a large container, 12 to 14 inches (30 to 35 cm) wide and 10 inches (25 cm) deep, that will accommodate six or seven plants. Keep it well watered and provide fertilizer every three weeks. Caraway can also be grown indoors if a cool and brightly lighted location is available, such as an unheated sunroom or cool enclosed porch. It's unlikely the plants will produce seeds indoors, but the aromatic foliage can be snipped and used for many kitchen purposes.

RESEARCH

Caraway's beneficial effect on intestinal spasms and flatulence has been confirmed by research.

CONSTITUENTS

Caraway contains a volatile oil high in carvone (40 - 60%), flavonoids, polysaccharides, and a fixed oil.

USUAL DOSAGE

Infusion: pour a cup of boiling water onto 1 teaspoonful of freshly crushed seeds and leave to infuse for 10-15 minutes. This should be drunk three times a day.
Tincture: take 1-4ml of the tincture three times a day.

SIDE EFFECTS AND CAUTIONS

Commercial caraway oil should be handled only by experts. Some people may experience dermatitis from contact with the essential oil.

COLLECTION AND HARVESTING

The flowering heads of caraway (umbels) are collected in July and left to ripen. The seeds are then easily collected as they can be shaken off.
Harvest fresh leaves at any time after the plants are about 15 cm (6 inches) high.
Harvest seeds when they have ripened, but before they fall to the ground. Cut leaf stems (with seed heads) at the base. Enclose the seed heads in a paper bag to catch the ripe seeds as they fall, then hang the stems upside down in a warm, dry location. When the seeds are dry, shake the heads vigorously. Be sure seeds are thoroughly dry before storing them in airtight jars.
Harvest roots in the fall.

COMBINATIONS

For flatulence and colic caraway combines well with chamomile and calamus, in diarrhea with agrimony and bayberry and in bronchitis with white horehound.

VINEGAR WITH CARAWAY

• 2 Tbs. caraway seeds
• 1 pint white vinegar

Mash the seeds in a glass bowl. Heat the vinegar almost to boiling. Pour over the seeds, stirring and mashing with a wooden spoon. Pour into a pint jar, cover, and let stand in a warm room for 10 days. Shake the jar daily. Taste at the end of 10 days. If not flavorful enough, strain out the seeds, and replace with fresh, crushed seeds. Cover again, and let stand 5 more days.
Strain through a fine sieve and store in a clean pint jar.

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