Jew's-mallow
StarCorchorus olitorius
Synonyms: Corchorus lanceolatus, Corchorus olitorius var. grandifolius, Corchorus quinquelocularis, Corchorus malchairii, Corchorus olitorius var. australiensis, Corchorus longicarpus, Corchorus olitorius var. malchairii, Corchorus decemangularis, Corchorus catharticus, Corchorus olitorius var. incisifolius
Western Herbalism Properties
Traditional Uses
Corchorus olitorius is one of the most widely eaten leafy vegetables of the Old World tropics, the mucilaginous cooked leaves forming the basis of dishes such as Egyptian molokhia soup. The same mucilage underlies its medicinal reputation: in Ayurveda the leaves are valued for cooling, demulcent (soothing) properties used to balance pitta, and across the Middle East, Egypt and Africa the leaves are used as a demulcent and to treat pain, fever and inflammation (Moroheiya leaf reviews; West African ethnomedicine). In West Africa the plant is employed for fevers, colds, constipation, dysentery, enteritis and tumours, and the leaves, roots and seeds are all used in folk medicine in various regions (Nutraceutical reviews of molokhia; Pharmacognostic studies).
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Botanical Description
Corchorus olitorius, known as Jew's mallow, jute mallow, nalta jute or molokhia, is an erect annual herb of the mallow family (Malvaceae, formerly Tiliaceae), probably native to Africa and southern Asia and now cultivated throughout the warm regions of the world. It grows to one to four metres tall on a slender, fibrous, often reddish stem that is the source of jute fibre. The alternate leaves are ovate to lanceolate with finely toothed (serrate) margins, the lowest pair of teeth at the leaf base typically prolonged into thread-like points. The small flowers are solitary or paired and leaf-opposed, with five free yellow petals and numerous stamens. The fruit is a long, slender, cylindrical, beaked capsule with about ten ribs, splitting into valves to release numerous small bluish-green to greyish seeds. A fast-growing plant of fields, gardens and waste ground, it is grown both as a leaf vegetable and as a source of bast fibre.
This information is for educational purposes only and is not intended to replace professional medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before using any herbal remedy, especially if you are pregnant, nursing, or taking medications.
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