Curry leaf tree
Murraya koenigii
Rutaceae
Indian subcontinent and Sri Lanka; wild in the forests of the Deccan and the Western Ghats, and planted in almost every South Indian yard
12.0000° N, 76.0000° E · Western Ghats and Deccan, India
7.5000° N, 80.7000° E · Sri Lanka
A small tree, 2–6 m, in the citrus family, with pinnate leaves of 11–21 small, glossy, strongly aromatic leaflets. Clusters of small white flowers become shiny black berries (the pulp is edible, the seed is not). The leaf is the ingredient — fresh, on the stem, dropped into hot oil in every popu. The English "curry leaf" is a translation of the Tamil kariveppilai; in Telugu it is karivepaku.
How it grows
A tough, slow tree that likes sun, warmth and a dry season. It grows wild on the rocky slopes of Telangana and is planted by every backyard well. Grown from fresh seed (which loses viability in weeks) or from root suckers, which the tree sends up freely. It fruits in the monsoon, drops leaves in a hard winter, and leafs out again in March. A mature tree gives leaves year-round and copes with neglect, though it flushes better with water and manure.
Grow at home
1. Beg a root sucker from a neighbour's tree — it is faster than seed.
2. Plant in full sun in a large pot (40 cm) or in the ground, in well-drained soil.
3. Water weekly once established; less in winter. Feed with a handful of compost in June.
4. Pinch the growing tips in the first year so it bushes instead of shooting up.
5. Pick sprigs from the outside inward; the tree gives more the more you pick. In a cold climate, bring the pot indoors below 5 °C.
Harvest
Pick whole sprigs (the full pinnate leaf) in the morning; strip the leaflets in the kitchen just before use. Fresh sprigs keep a week in a cloth in the fridge. For storage, sun-dry sprigs in shade for three to four days and keep in a jar — the aroma fades but the leaf is still worth using. Curry-leaf powder (karivepaku podi) is the Telugu way of keeping the leaf through the year.
Lore
"Karivepaku" has become a Telugu idiom: to treat someone like a curry leaf is to use them and push them to the side of the plate. But no Telugu kitchen would do without it — the popu is not done until the leaf spits. Elders say the leaf is good for the hair and for digestion, and karivepaku podi with hot rice is served to those recovering from illness. These are household traditions; the pharmacology has mostly been studied in animals — see the Thrive entry.