Galangal /Alpinia Galangal/
A perennial herb with sweet-scented sword-shaped leaves. It grows to 1.6m high in a dense clump of about 1 m wide. The outside of the rhizome is reddish brown and inside is white. White flowers occur in clusters at the ends of stalks and have a sweet scent
Uses
Usage
Galangal is used most often in Southeast Asian cuisine and is an essential ingredient in most fresh curry pastes and spicy soups. The young leaves, flowers and shoots are also edible.
Production Requirements
Climate
A tropical plant.
Cultivation
Plant a piece of the rhizome with one or two buds just below the soil surface. Plant in late Spring about 25cm apart once the soil has warmed up. Galangal thrives in fertile well-drained and moist soils. It prefers a protected shady position so is a perfect understory plant in a food forest.
Edible parts
Rhizomes, young shoots, leaves and flowers.
Risks and weed potential
None known.
Harvesting & Processing
Harvest
Rhizomes can be harvested year round.
Young pink/red rhizomes are more tender than the older brown rhizomes. Clumps older than 1 year are difficult to harvest from as the younger rhizomes become entangled with the older tough rhizomes. This can be avoided by dividing whole clumps and replanting in Spring so no clump is ever older then one year.
