Hoja santa

Hoja santa
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Plantae
(unranked):
Angiosperms
(unranked):
Magnoliids
Order:
Piperales
Family:
Piperaceae
Genus:
Piper
Species:
P. auritum
Binomial name
Piper auritum
Synonyms

Piper sanctum[1]

Hoja santa (Piper auritum) is a herb with a heart-shaped velvety leaf. The name hoja santa means "sacred leaf" in Spanish language. It is also known as yerba santa,[2][3] hierba santa,[2] Mexican pepperleaf,[3] root beer plant,[4] and sacred pepper.[1]

Description

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The difficult taste of Hoja santa is not easy to describe. It has been compared to eucalyptus,[5][6] licorice,[4][7] sassafras,[2] anise,[3][8] nutmeg,[3] mint,[9] tarragon,[5] and black pepper.[3] The flavor is stronger in the young stems and veins.

References

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  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Barlow, Prof. Snow (2003). "Sorting Piper names". University of Melbourne. Retrieved 2007-03-29.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Miller, Mark Charles (1993). Coyote's Pantry: Southwest Seasonings and at Home Flavoring Techniques. Ten Speed Press. p. 70. ISBN 0898154944.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Katzer, Gernot (2000). "Gernot Katzer's Spice Pages - Mexican Pepperleaf (Piper auritum Kunth)". Retrieved 2007-03-29.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Rolland, Jacques L. (2006). The Food Encyclopedia: Over 8,000 Ingredients, Tools, Techniques and People. Robert Rose. p. 326. ISBN 0778801500.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Ingredient - Hoja Santa". The Washington Post. 2004-08-18. Retrieved 2007-03-29.
  6. ↑ Pyles, Stephan (1999). New Tastes from Texas. Three Rivers Press. p. 214. ISBN 0609804979.
  7. ↑ Raichlen, Steven (2000). Steven Raichlen's Healthy Latin Cooking: 200 Sizzling Recipes from Mexico, Cuba, Caribbean, Brazil, and Beyond. Rodale Books. p. 26. ISBN 0875964982.
  8. ↑ Davidson, Alan (1999). The Oxford Companion to Food. Oxford University Press. p. 383. ISBN 0-19-211579-0.
  9. ↑ Nordin, Donna (2001). Contemporary Southwest: The Cafe Terra Cotta Cookbook. Ten Speed Press. p. 19. ISBN 1580081800.