Lemongrass is native to India, Southeast Asia, and Oceania. It is widely used as a herb in Asian cuisine and also as medicinal herb in India. It has a subtle citrus flavor and can be dried and powdered, or used fresh. It is commonly used in teas, soups, and curries. It is also suitable for use with poultry, fish, beef, and seafood. It is often used as a tea in African countries such as Togo and the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Latin American countries such as Mexico.
Kaffir Lime leaves are widely used in Thai[3] and Lao cuisine (for dishes such as tom yum), andCambodian cuisine (for the base paste "Krueng"). Makrut lime leaves are used in Vietnamese cuisine with chicken to add fragrance. They are also used when steaming snails to decrease the pungent odor while cooking. The leaves are also used in Indonesian cuisine (especiallyBalinese cuisine and Javanese cuisine), for foods such as Soto ayam, and are used along with Indonesian bay leaf for chicken and fish. They are also found in Malaysian[5] and Burmese cuisines.
Curry leaves are highly valued as seasoning in southern and west-coast Indian cooking, and Sri Lankan cooking ( කරපිංචා), especially in curries, usually fried along with the chopped onion in the first stage of the preparation. They are also used to make thoran, vada, rasamand kadhi. In their fresh form, they have a short shelf life & do not keep well in the refrigerator. They are also available dried, though the aroma is largely inferior.
The leaves of Murraya koenigii are also used as an herb in Ayurvedic medicine. They are believed to possess anti-diabeticproperties.[2][3][unreliable medical source?][4]
Although most commonly used in curries, leaves from the curry tree can be used in many other dishes to add flavor. In Cambodia, Khmer toast the leaves in an open flame or roast it until crispy and then crush it into a soured soup dish called Maju Krueng.
In the absence of tulsi leaves, curry leaves are used for rituals and pujas.
