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Also spelled FENUGREEK, fenugreek or its dried seeds, used as a food, a flavouring, and a medicine. The seeds' aroma and taste are strong, sweetish, and somewhat bitter, reminiscent of burnt sugar.
They are farinaceous in texture and may be mixed with flour for bread or eaten raw or cooked. In India young fenugreek plants are used as a potherb. Commercially known as 'Methi', Indian fenugreek comes in several well-known varieties such as 'Desi' and 'Champa'. Traditionally considered an aid to digestion, the seeds have been used as an internal
emollient for inflammation of the digestive tract and as an external poultice for boils and abscesses; but their present medical use is principally confined to the treatment of cows and horses.
The plants are erect, loosely branched, less than 3 feet (1 m) tall with trifoliate, light green leaves and small white flowers. The slender pods are up to 6 inches (15 cm) long, curved and beaked, and contain yellow-brown seeds--flat rhomboids characterized by a deep furrow, less than 0.2 inch (1 cm) long. They contain the alkaloids trigonelline and choline and a yellow coloring matter.