It was employed by Hippocrates and other Greek physicians. It is still much used in the East as a condiment, and forms an ingredient in curry powder. In the northern countries of Europe, the seeds are sometimes mixed with bread, but the chief consumption of Coriander seed in this country is in flavouring certain alcoholic liquors, for which purpose it is largely grown in Essex. Distillers of gin make use of it, and veterinary surgeons employ it as a drug for cattle and horses. The fruit is the only part of the plant that seems to have any medical or dietetical reputation.
Confectioners form from the seeds little, round pink and white comfits for children.
It is included in the British Pharmacopceia, but it is chiefly used to disguise unpleasant medicine. A power of conferring immortality is thought by the Chinese to be a property of the seeds. The seeds are slow in germinating. The seeds may also be sown in March, in heat, for planting out in May. As the seeds ripen, about August, the disagreeable odour gives place to a pleasant aroma, and the plant is then cut down with sickles and when dry the fruit is threshed out.