Culantro | |
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Eryngium foetidum leaves, with a US ruler for scale | |
Scientific classification ![]() | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Asterids |
Order: | Apiales |
Family: | Apiaceae |
Genus: | Eryngium |
Species: | E. foetidum
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Binomial name | |
Eryngium foetidum | |
Synonyms[1] | |
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Eryngium foetidum is a tropical perennial herb in the family Apiaceae. Common names include culantro (Panama) (/kuːˈlɑːntroʊ/ or /kuːˈlæntroʊ/), cimarrón, recao (Puerto Rico), chardon béni (France), Mexican coriander, samat, bandhaniya, long coriander, Burmese coriander, sawtooth coriander, and ngò gai (Vietnam).[2][3] It is native to Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central and South America, but is cultivated worldwide, mostly in the tropics as a perennial, but sometimes in temperate climates as an annual.
In the United States, the common name culantro sometimes causes confusion with cilantro, a common name for the leaves of Coriandrum sativum (also in Apiaceae but in a different genus), of which culantro is said to taste like a stronger version.[4]