Asafoetida or Hing

[Guest guest]

For anyone who was wondering, asafoetida (aka hing) is described below.

 

" Asafoetida gets its name from the Persian aza, for mastic or resin, and the

Latin foetidus,

for stinking. It is a gum that is from the sap of the roots and stem of the

ferula species, a

giant fennel that exudes a vile odour. Early records mention that Alexander the

Great

carried this " stink finger " west in 4 BC. It was used as a spice in ancient

Rome, and

although not native to India, it has been used in Indian medicine and cookery

for ages. It

was believed that asafoetida enhanced singers voices. In the days of the Mughal

aristocracy, the court singers if Agra and Delhi would eat a spoonful of

asafoetida with

butter and practice on the banks of the river Yamuna. "

 

For more info on asafeotida, see the following site (from which I got the above

par.):

 

http://www.theepicentre.com/Spices/asafetid.html

 

best love, pat