Description
Cardamom oil is obtained by the distillation of powdered seeds of cardamom. Steam distillation is the most common method employed for the production of cardamom oil. Use of the cohabitation technique for distillation has been discontinued because the process hydrolyzes esters. The quality of the oil that is obtained depends on the variety, rate, and time of distillation. The important trade varieties are Alleppey Green, Coorg Green, and Saklespur bleached. Yields of volatile oil from the seeds of these three varieties were 10.8%, 9.0%, and 8.0%, respectively (Lewis et al., 1967).
Pharmaceutical Properties of Cardamom Oil
Cardamom oil possesses both antibacterial and antifungal properties. The chemical composition, physicochemical properties, and antimicrobial activity of dried cardamom fruits used to assess the potential usefulness of cardamom oil as a preservative have been investigated by Badei et al. (1991a,b). The antimicrobial effect of the cardamom oil was tested against nine bacterial strains, one fungus, and one yeast, which together showed that the oil was as effective as 28.9% phenol. The minimal inhibitory concentration of the oil was 0.7 mg ml1, and it was concluded that cardamom oil could be used at a minimal inhibitory concentration range of 0.5–0.9 mg ml1 without any adverse effect whatsoever on flavor quality. Cardamom oil is effective as an antioxidant for cottonseed oil, as assessed by stability, peroxide number, refractive index, specific gravity, and rancid odor.
External appearance, size, and bleached color are not the parameters to beconsidered in selecting cardamom for distillation. High-grade cardamom is not economical for distillation, since it fetches a better price as whole cardamom in the trade. Lower grades, which do not fetch higher value because of their defective appearance, but are still good from the point of view of flavor, are ideally suited for distillation. The husk is almost devoid of any volatile oil (Anon., 1985). The flavor of cardamom is due mainly to 1,8-cineole, terpinyl acetate, linalyl acetate, and linalool. (Table 2.41 , which also gives the total flavor profile.)The United Kingdom was earlier distilling oil from the cardamom obtained from India, Sri Lanka, and Tanzania (British Pharmacopoeia, 1980, 1993). The oil used was termed “English distilled cardamom oil” and priced higher compared to the oils produced from these cardamom-growing countries.