Nigella sativa

Nigella sativa(black caraway, also known asblack cumin,nigella,kalonji,charnushka)is anannualflowering plantin the familyRanunculaceae, native to eastern Europe (Bulgaria and Romania) and western Asia (Cyprus, Turkey, Iran and Iraq), but naturalized over a much wider area, including parts of Europe, northern Africa and east toMyanmar.It is used as a spice in many cuisines.
The genus nameNigellais adiminutiveof theLatinniger"black", referring to the seed color.Thespecific epithetsativameans "cultivated".
In English,Nigella sativaand its seed are variously called black caraway, black seed, black cumin, fennel flower, nigella, nutmeg flower, Roman coriander,black onion seedandkalonji.
Black seed and black caraway may also refer toElwendia persica, which is also known asBunium persicum.
N. sativagrows to 20–30 cm (7.9–11.8 in) tall, with finely divided, linear (but not thread-like)leaves. Theflowersare delicate, and usually coloured pale blue and white, with five to ten petals. The fruit is a large and inflatedcapsulecomposed of three to seven united follicles, each containing numerousseedswhich are used as spice, sometimes as a replacement forBunium bulbocastanum(also called black cumin).
TheseedsofN. sativaare used as a spice in many cuisines.InPalestine, the seeds are ground to make bitterqizhapaste.
The dry-roasted seeds flavour curries, vegetables, and pulses. They can be used as a seasoning in recipes with pod fruit, vegetables, salads, and poultry. In some cultures, the black seeds are used to flavour bread products. They are used as a part of the spice mixturepanch phoron(meaning a mixture of five spices) in many recipes inBengali cuisineand most recognizably in some variations ofnaan, such asnân-e barbari.Nigellais also used intresse cheese, a braided string cheese calledmajdoulehormajdouliin the Middle East.
In the United States, theFood and Drug AdministrationclassifiesNigella sativaasGenerally Recognized as Safe(GRAS) for use as a spice, natural seasoning, or flavouring.
Archaeologicalevidence about the earliest cultivation ofN. sativadates back threemillennia, withN. sativaseeds found in several sites fromancient Egypt, including theTomb of Tutankhamun.Seeds were found in aHittiteflask inTurkeyfrom the second millennium BC.
N. sativamay have been used as acondimentof theOld Worldto flavour food.ThePersianphysicianAvicennadescribedN. sativaas a treatment fordyspneain hisThe Canon of Medicine.N. sativawas used in the Middle East as atraditional medicine.
Oils are 32% to 40% of the total composition ofN. sativaseeds.N. sativaoil containslinoleic acid,oleic acid,palmitic acid, andtrans-anethole, and other minor constituents, such as nigellicine, nigellidine, nigellimine, and nigellimine N-oxide.Aromaticsincludethymoquinone, dihydrothymoquinone,p-cymene,carvacrol,α-thujene,thymol,α-pinene,β-pineneandtrans-anethole.Proteinand variousalkaloidsare present in the seeds.
Despite considerable use ofN. sativaintraditional medicinepractices in Africa and Asia, there is insufficient high-qualityclinical evidenceto indicate that consuming the seeds or oil can be used to treat human diseases.One meta-analysis of clinical trials found weak evidence thatN. sativahas a short-term benefit on loweringsystolicanddiastolic blood pressure.A 2016 review indicated thatN. sativasupplementation may lowertotal cholesterol,LDL, andtriglyceridelevels.