highlights
The use of garlic started in India 4500 years ago, it was also cultivated.
It was considered so precious and important in Egypt that bunches of high quality garlic were kept with the mummy.
Its demand is very high in the world and its production is less, that is why it is becoming expensive.
The price of garlic has started touching the sky in the market. Within no time its price has reached Rs 600 per kg. The condition of garlic is such that most of the kitchens in India cannot do without it. It has become an essential part of our diet. However, in some religions, its prohibition has also been urged. Where did garlic come from in India? Now in which states is it cultivated and how is it produced?
Garlic was first cultivated by the Sumerians on the Mediterranean coast 5,000 years ago. Some sources say that it came from the eastern plains of the Caspian Sea. Garlic cultivation in India came thousands of years ago from Central Asia. History tells that garlic has been in use in India for 4500 years. In India, garlic seeds were found in Farmana in the Indus Valley during the Harappan period between 2600-2200 BC.
In Egypt it was also given as salary
Garlic dated 1325 BC was found in the tomb of Tutankhamun in Egypt. Which was well preserved. However, garlic has been used as a medicinal plant and food source for more than 7,000 years. It was so popular among the workers and slaves who built the pyramids that work stopped due to a shortage of garlic. It is also said that it was also given as salary to the workers building pyramids in Egypt.
Garlic was so valued in Egypt that people would preserve the best quality garlic cloves in mummies along with their loved ones. (UNSPLASH)
Older athletes used it to increase performance
Athletes ranging from the Greek Olympians to the Roman gladiators under Nero are said to have consumed garlic to enhance their stamina.
It was preserved in a special mummy.
The properties of garlic were known thousands of years ago, when its cultivation started in the fourth millennium BC. The oldest remains of garlic were found in a cave at Ein Gedi in Israel around 4000 BC (Middle Chalcolithic period). In Egypt it had great importance and was considered a very precious thing. Perhaps for this reason, garlic was also preserved in the mummies made in Egypt. Its earliest reference in historical documents comes from the Avesta, a collection of Zoroastrian sacred writings compiled during the sixth century BC.
China produces the most garlic in the world and India is at second place, but if China produces 78 percent then India’s global share is 10.4 percent. (Unsplash)
China produces two-thirds of the world’s garlic
China produces the most garlic in the world, so much so that you will be surprised. It produces 73.8 percent of the total garlic produced in the world and also sells it across the world. India is at second place in its production with 10.4 percent and Bangladesh is at third place with 1.7 percent. In the year 2021, China produced more than 20.45 million tons of green garlic. Now even the market of our country is full of Chinese garlic. The special thing about this garlic is that its cloves are four times thicker than Indian garlic.
Highest production in India is in Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat
However, garlic production in India has increased from 2.16 lakh tonnes to 8.34 lakh tonnes in the last 25 years. Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Orissa, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab and Haryana are its main producing states in the country, but the reality is that compared to the amount of garlic consumed in the country, we produce it less. For this reason, it has become increasingly expensive in the market. More than 50 percent of its production takes place in the states of Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh.
The green part of garlic is used to enhance taste and nutrition in many dishes including soups. (wiki commons)
From digestion to fighting bacteria
Nutrients like protein, phosphorus and potassium are found in garlic. It helps in digestion. Reduces cholesterol in blood. Garlic is a natural antibiotic that can fight many types of bacteria and viruses. It contains organosulfur and flavonoid compounds that have immunomodulatory effects. Garlic is one of the first crops that humans started growing.
How has it been used in medicine?
Ancient Chinese and Indian medical texts recommended eating garlic to aid respiration and digestion, and treat leprosy and parasitic infections. The 14th century Muslim physician Avicenna described garlic as useful for toothache, chronic cough, constipation, parasites, snake and insect bites, and gynecological diseases. The first use of garlic as a magical amulet dates back to Medieval Europe. As a spice it had magical importance.
Why was it named Garlic?
Garlic is of the same species as onion. It is also interesting to know why its name is Garlic in English. It originates from the Old English words garlēac, meaning gar (spear) and leek, ‘spear-shaped leek’.
stinking roses
This is a flowering perennial plant. It has a tall, erect flowering stem, which grows up to 1 meter (3 feet) tall. It is easy to grow it. Garlic plants ward off rabbits and moles. Because of its strong odor, garlic is sometimes called the “stinking rose.” The garlic that you and I use is the root part of the plant and develops underground in the form of bulbs.
pungent smell and taste
Garlic has been used for traditional medicine in various cultures such as Egypt, Japan, China, Rome and Greece. Green garlic imparts garlic flavor and aroma to the food without spiciness. Green garlic is often chopped and fried or cooked in soups or hot pots in Southeast Asian (i.e. Vietnamese, Thai, Myanmar, Lao, Cambodian, Singaporean) and Chinese cookery. Garlic is essential in Middle Eastern and Arabic cooking.
Don’t eat garlic if you go to mosque
In many European cultures, garlic was used for white magic. It was believed that wearing it would keep evil powers from coming near. It was hung in the windows. However, in Hindu religion, garlic is considered a rajasic food and it is advised not to eat it. This is absolutely prohibited in Jainism. In Islam, it is advised not to eat raw garlic before going to the mosque.
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Tags: community kitchen, food, food diet, healthy food
FIRST PUBLISHED: February 7, 2024, 12:28 IST
