Thanks Inderjeet Ji I had no idea about Lichen used as a spice in india tanay
On Tue, Jan 18, 2011 at 9:22 PM, Inderjeet Sethi <[email protected]>wrote: > Dear All, > This is a portion of information about lichens as food. The attached pic > was taken in a local market selling masala ingredients. > > Lichens for food: There are records of lichens being used as food by many > different human cultures across the world.Lichens are eaten by people in > North America, Europe, Asia, and Africa, and perhaps elsewhere. Often > lichens are merely famine foods eaten in times of dire needs, but in some > cultures lichens are a staple food or even a delicacy. Two problems often > encountered with eating lichens are that they usually contain mildly toxic > secondary compounds, and that lichen polysaccharides are generally > indigestible to humans. Many human cultures have discovered preparation > techniques to overcome these problems. Lichens are often thoroughly washed, > boiled, or soaked in ash water to help remove secondary compounds. > > In the past *Cetraria islandica* (Iceland moss) was an important human > food in northern Europe and Scandinavia, and was cooked in many different > ways, such as bread, porridge, pudding, soup, or salad. *Bryoria fremonii*was > an important food in parts of North America, where it was usually pit > cooked. *Cladina rangiferina*, or reindeer lichen , is a staple food of > reindeer and caribou in the arctic. These lichens provide an important > component of the ground cover grazed by animals and are also used by > Laplanders to make hay for their animals. Northern peoples in North America > and Siberia traditionally eat the partially digested lichen after they > remove it from the rumen of caribou that have been killed. It is often > called *'stomach icecream'*. In India, and other centers of curry powder > production, *garam masala sauce* contains certain lichens used as bulking > agents. > > Many invertebrates (insects, mites and sluges) also use lichens as food. > They may also be eaten by a number of large hoofed mammals. > > > -- > ~ik~ > Dr.Inderjeet Kaur Sethi > Associate Professor > Department of Botany > SGTB Khalsa College > University of Delhi > Delhi-110007 > M: 9818775237 > -- *Tanay Bose* Research Assistant & Teaching Assistant. Department of Botany. University of British Columbia . 3529-6270 University Blvd. Vancouver, B.C. V6T 1Z4 (Canada) Phone: 778-323-4036 (Mobile) 604-822-2019 (Lab) 604-822-6089 (Fax) [email protected] *Webpages:* http://www.botany.ubc.ca/people/mberbee.html http://www.botany.ubc.ca/people/gradstud.html https://sites.google.com/site/efloraofindia/
