Description
Roselle is a bushy plant in the mallow family (Malvaceae), related to okra and cotton, with an edible part that surprises people: it is the calyx, not the flower's petals, that is eaten.
The plant grows as an upright annual or short-lived perennial, one to two metres tall, with green or reddish stems and deeply lobed leaves. The flowers are pale yellow to cream with a dark red spot at the base of each petal. After the petals drop, the small green sepals at the flower's base — the calyx — swell into a fleshy, deep-crimson cup that encloses the developing seed pod. That fleshy calyx is the part steeped into drinks, simmered into jams and used for its colour.
The flavour is sharply tart and fruity, somewhere between cranberry and a sour plum, with a clean acidity and a deep red colour that comes from anthocyanin pigments. The leaves are also eaten, most famously in South India, where their sour green flavour is the signature of dishes such as gongura pachadi.
It is important not to confuse roselle with the ornamental hibiscus shrubs grown for their showy flowers. Those popular garden hibiscus belong to Hibiscus rosa-sinensis and are not the same plant; roselle is a distinct species grown for its sour calyces and leaves.
Origin & History
Roselle is native to West and Central Africa, and spread to South and Southeast Asia and the Caribbean during the sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries. It has since naturalised widely across the tropics.
Different regions made the plant their own. In Sudan and Egypt the dried calyces are steeped as karkade. In Mexico and Central America the same drink is agua de jamaica. Across the English-speaking Caribbean it becomes "sorrel", a spiced drink especially associated with Christmas. In Malaysia and Thailand it is made into a ruby-red juice and jam, while in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana the sour leaves are a beloved green that anchors an entire style of cooking.
Uses
Culinary
- Infusions: Steep the dried or fresh calyces in hot water for a tart, ruby drink — serve hot or iced, sweetened or spiced
- Jams and jellies: The calyces are high in natural pectin and set well, making a cranberry-like preserve
- Sauces and syrups: Simmer calyces into a syrup for drinks, desserts or drizzling
- Colouring: The deep red pigment colours drinks, rice and sweets
- Leaves: Cooked as a sour green, as in South Indian gongura pachadi, or added to soups and dals for acidity in place of tamarind
- Cranberry substitute: The tart flavour stands in for cranberries where they are not grown
Traditional Uses
Roselle has a long folk record across cultures, often around cooling and digestive uses. These are traditional; roselle should be enjoyed as food, not relied on as a treatment for any condition.
Other Uses
The fibrous stems of a taller variety (Hibiscus sabdariffa var. altissima) are a minor source of bast fibre, and the plant is also grown as an ornamental and hedge plant.
Nutritional Benefits
Fresh roselle calyces are low in calories — roughly 49 kcal per 100 g — and low in fat, while contributing a useful amount of calcium, along with iron, magnesium and potassium, and a modest amount of vitamin C. The deep red colour comes from anthocyanins, a family of antioxidant pigments.
The leaves add sourness and are a source of vitamins and minerals in the cuisines that use them, though published serving figures vary. As with any ingredient with a folk reputation, treat the nutrition as part of a varied diet rather than a guarantee. Roselle tea's tartness is pleasant and thirst-quenching; make no medical promises around it.
How to Prepare
Fresh or Dried Calyces
- Use the calyx: Remove the central seed pod from each fleshy cup; the seed pod is discarded and the calyx used.
- To infuse: Steep a small handful of dried calyces (or a larger amount of fresh) in just-boiled water for several minutes, then strain and sweeten or spice to taste.
- To make a drink: Simmer calyces with water and a little sugar, strain and chill, or add ginger, clove or cinnamon for a spiced version.
- To make jam: Simmer calyces with sugar and a little water until thick; the natural pectin helps it set.
Leaves
Wash the leaves, strip them from thick stalks, and cook them briefly — they soften and mellow quickly, and their sourness brightens soups, dals and chutneys.
Recipes
As Jungle Kitchen develops recipes featuring roselle, those will be linked here.
Suggested applications: iced roselle drink, spiced roselle jam, roselle syrup, sour-leaf dal, roselle-poached fruit.
Varieties
- Red-calyx roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa var. sabdariffa forma ruber): the familiar ruby type grown for food.
- Green-calyx roselle (var. sabdariffa forma albus): an edible but green form, less widely used.
- Fibre roselle (var. altissima): a taller type grown mainly for its stem fibre.
- Cranberry hibiscus or false roselle (Hibiscus acetosella): a related red-leaved plant sometimes confused with roselle.
Fun Facts
- The part you drink is a calyx — a set of modified sepals — not a flower petal or a fruit.
- Roselle is a different species from the ornamental hibiscus shrubs in gardens, which belong to Hibiscus rosa-sinensis.
- The same soft drink has many names: karkade in Egypt, agua de jamaica in Mexico, and sorrel in the Caribbean.
- Roselle travelled from West Africa across three continents in just a few centuries.
- In Caribbean households, spiced sorrel is a traditional Christmas drink.