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Galangal - Other Names: Greater Galangal, Galangale, Galang
Galangal (from the plant of Alpinia galanga or Languas galangal), like ginger and turmeric,
is a member of the rhizome family. Rhizomes are knobby underground stems that are
known for their pungent and flavorful flesh. Rhizomes are not a significant source of any
nutrients – most especially because they are rarely eaten in great enough quantities to
constitute a serving.
The rhizome (root) of galangal resembles ginger in taste and appearance. One serving (64g) of galangal contains 45 calories and 2 g of dietary fiber. It is also a source of sodium,iron, vitamins A and C. It also has some phyto-chemicals such as beta-Sitosterol, Galangin,Emodin and Quercetin. [3] It is predominantly found in Asian markets and sold fresh, frozen, dried, or powdered. Galangal is also well known in European medieval cooking. Only a pinch of dried and powdered versions are typically needed.
Galangal is frequently used in fish and shellfish recipes in combination with garlic, ginger, chilli, and lemon.
There are three varieties of galangal- Greater Galangal, Lesser Galangal and Kaempferia Galangal. Different galangal varieties vary in their hotness and flavor. Flavor ranges from flowery to ginger-like to peppery cinnamon. Greater Galangal has an orange-brown skin with pale yellow or white interior. Greater galangal can be found in sliced form or powder. Used as a flavoring throughout Indonesia, Malaysia, and parts of India. Lesser Galangal has a red-brown interior and fibrous texture. It can be founded as slices or powder. Lesser galangal comes from China where it is used as a medicinal herb, but it is now grown in Indonesia and regarded as a spice. It has an aromatic and pungent, peppery and ginger- like flavor. Kaempferia Galangal has red skin and white interior. Used as a flavoring in South East Asia.
In addition to being used as a spice in cooking, galangal has been used in Asia and the Middle East in perfumes, snuffs, aphrodisiacs, and as flavors for condiments (including vinegar and beer), in teas in Germany and wines in Russia. Like ginger, galangal has been used for medicinal purposes to treat nausea, flatulence, and dyspepsia.
When ripe, galangal should be ivory white and firm with very little separation between skin and flesh. Never buy galangal that is wrinkled or shriveled. Store refrigerated uncut and unwrapped for up to 3 weeks or, peel the root and place it in a jar of sherry and store it refrigerated for several months. Galangal can be frozen if tightly wrapped in foil. Galangal can be sliced and used to flavor soups and stews (remove before serving). It can also be mixed with lemon grass, chilies, shallots and garlic into a paste that can be used to flavor rice dishes. Galangal can also be mixed into a curry paste for similar purposes.
Potential Health Benefits of Galangal
Galangal has anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant activities.
Researchers have proposed the benefits of galangal in certain inflammatory conditions. Recently, Korean scientists isolated six diarylheptanoids from the rhizome of Alpinia officinarum or galangal. All these compounds demonstrated inhibitory activities on nitric oxide production in lipopolysaccharide-activated macrophage cell line RAW 264.7. Furthermore, these compounds suppressed expression of the inducible NO synthase protein and mRNA. [5] Separately, Japanese researchers prepared 80% aqueous acetone extract of the galangal. This extract was found to contain diarylheptanoids and galangin and it was also able to inhibit nitric oxide (NO) production in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-activated mouse peritoneal macrophages. [6] These findings including results from some other studies are important to understand galangal's anti-inflammatory activities. [8, 11]Galangal may benefit people at risk of cancer.
In a study of COR L23 lung cancer and MCF7 breast cancer cell lines, UK researchers showed the anti-cancer activities of galangal extracts. [7] As described in the previous section, galangal contains a flavonoid-galangin. Galangin has shown to have anti-oxidative and free radical scavenging activities. It modulates enzyme activities and suppresses the genotoxicity of chemicals. [1]Galangal also has a volatile oil. Researchers have shown this volatile oil could enhance effectively the skin permeation of 5-fluorouracil. [4]
Galangal may have benefits of lipid-lowering.
Researchers from China found that the galangal extract could potently inhibit fatty-acid synthase (FAS, E.C.2.3.1.85). They proposed the inhibitory mechanism is related to the activities of the main flavonoids existing in the galangal such as galangin, quercetin and kaempferol. [9] While, Korean researchers showed a pancreatic lipase inhibitor, 5-hydroxy-7-(4'-hydroxy-3'-methoxyphenyl)-1-phenyl-3-heptanone (HPH), from the rhizome of Alpinia officinarum significantly lowered the serum TG level in corn oil feeding-induced triglyceridemic mice, and reduced serum triglyceride (TG) and cholesterol in Triton WR-1339-induced hyperlipidemic mice. [8] Finally, another group demonstrated an ethyl acetate fraction of Alpinia officinarum rhizome containing 3-methylethergalangin was a potent lipase inhibitor in a study of hyperlipidemic mice. [10]
