Curry berries are the berries of the curry tree, and they come in clusters of 32 to 80 tiny fruits. Curry berries are spherical with a diameter of about half an inch. The tree’s fragrant white blossoms yield little fruits that begin green and mature to a lustrous black color. Their inside flesh is ethereal blue with a luscious texture and makes up about half of the fruit. Each fruit contains 1 to 2 toxic deep green seeds that should not be eaten. Curry berries are readily accessible during the summer months.
The Curry fruit is found on the evergreen curry tree in India. Murraya koenigii is the botanical name for the tree, which belongs to the Rutaceae family. The trees are most known for their “curry leaves,” used as a spice in Indian cooking. Curry berries are also edible. However, they aren’t as popular. Vitamin C, anthocyanins, and minerals like iron, magnesium, phosphorous, and calcium are abundant in curry berries. Curry berries are also being investigated for their potential as a natural diabetes therapy.
Please keep in mind that curry berries contain hazardous seeds that should not be eaten. Curry berries are snacking fruit that can be eaten fresh. Their juice can also be extracted by squeezing them. They’re most typically employed in Ayurvedic medicine to make a nutritious juice or tonic.
Though the seeds are poisonous, they produce an essential oil used in perfumery and are antibacterial and antifungal. The leaves are the most regularly used. The curry tree’s edible components have been a major part of Indian food and Ayurvedic health for hundreds of years. The plant also has landscaping value since it can be used as a shade tree and a hedge and windbreak when planted in a row.
Are Curry Berries Edible?
Yes, the flesh of the curry berry is edible, but the taste is not exactly inviting.
In the summer, curry leaf trees produce small fragrant flowers that self-pollinate to produce lustrous purplish-black berries about 1cm long when fully ripe. The berries have no culinary use. However, the berries’ meat is edible, albeit the flavor is regarded as ‘medicinal.’ The berries also contain a single enormous poisonous seed, which should not be consumed.
Are Curry Tree Berries Poisonous?
No, but do not eat the seeds, as the seeds are poisonous to humans.
In many prepared cuisines, the fragrant leaves, which are an essential element in Indian cooking, are employed as a flavoring ingredient. They can be eaten fresh or dried, but they can also be frozen, cooked, or crushed. The dried powdered leaves are a practical storage option because the little flavor is lost throughout the drying process. Fresh leaves can be cooked and then either integrated or removed from the finished product. The fruits can be eaten as well. However, the seeds should not be consumed.
Can You Eat the Berries Off a Curry Leaf Tree?
Yes, you can eat the berries off the curry leaf tress –remember to discard the seeds. The seeds cannot be ingested under any circumstance.
Curry Leaf Tree (Murraya koenigii) is a beautiful, upright tree native to Sri Lanka and India that belongs to the Rutaceae family, including citrus and white sapotes. Its dense canopy produces a large number of aromatic fern-like leaves used to flavor curry meals and for medicinal purposes. Although this tree is native to the subtropical and tropical regions of the world, it also thrives in temperate settings. Therefore, it requires a sunny, protected, frost-free location as well as free-draining yet wet soil.
Because the leaves lose their flavor when dried, they are best used fresh. When stored in a dry plastic bag, new leaves will last for a week in the fridge. Pick curry leaf leaves when they are green and full of flavor in the summer or fall and freeze them, keeping the leaves whole and not stripping the small individual leaflets from the leaf stem before freezing.
During the growing season, pruning can keep the tree bushy and provide a significant harvest of leaves for freezing.
The leaves give curries, meat, fish, and vegetarian meals, as well as pickles and chutneys, a subtle warm, smokey, spicy flavor and scent. The leaves are sometimes sautéed (lightly fried) in oil first, typically with additional spices, and then added to stir-fries or curries to improve the flavor.
It thrives in USDA hardiness zones 10 to 12, and its feathery leaves, fragrant white flowers, and glossy, bluish-black berries make it a famous decorative tree. If sown while still fresh, the berries contain seeds that you can use to create new curry leaf trees. However, despite direct seeding and well-managed germination circumstances, the seeds have low viability and may fail to sprout.
Follow these methods if you wish to cultivate this tree in your garden:
Harvest curry leaf berries when they reach a diameter of 2/3 inch and have turned a glossy, bluish-black tint. Instead of gathering the fruit from the ground, pick them directly from the tree. Avoid any berries that show evidence of insect or bird damage, as well as any that have shriveled skin, which signals that they are overripe and the seed within may be lifeless.
With a paring knife, score each berry lengthwise. Next, pull the fruit in half to reveal the single ample pale green seed inside. To remove the sticky, sweet residue left by the fruit, remove the source and rinse it thoroughly in cool water.
Sow curry leaf seeds in 4-inch plastic pots filled with new soil or seed-starting compost as soon as possible. Sow it at a depth of 1/3 inch, which is the diameter of the seed. Cover the berry seed with soil and firm it down.
Place the pot in a bright, warm, gently shaded setting. I was using a heating coil or propagation mat. Cover the pot with clear plastic tarps or a growth dome to keep the curry leaf seed warm and damp.
Check the soil moisture regularly. Check to a depth of 2 inches if the top 1/2 inch seems dry. To avoid dislodging the curry leaf seed, water gently with a spray bottle. Overwatering will cause the source to decay or fail.
