ASAFETIDA

as·a·fet·i·da also as·a·foet·i·da   (ās'ə-fět'ĭ-də)    n.  A brownish, bitter, foul-smelling resinous material obtained from the roots of several plants of the genus Ferula in the parsley family and formerly used in medicine. [Middle English, from Medieval Latin : asa, gum (from Persian azā, mastic) + Latin fetida, feminine of fetidus, stinking; see fetid.]

Main Entry: asa·fet·i·da
Variant: or asa·foet·i·da /"as-&-'fit-&d-E, -'fet-&d-&/
Function:noun
: the fetid gum resin of various Asian plants of the genus Ferula (especially F. assafoetida, F. foetida, or F. narthex) occurring in the form of tears anddark-colored masses, having a strong odor and taste, and formerly used in medicine as an antispasmodic and in folk medicine as a general prophylactic against disease

asafetida

gum resin prized as a condiment in India and Iran, where it is used to flavour curries, meatballs, and pickles. It has been used in Europe and the United States in perfumes and for flavouring. Acrid in taste, it emits a strong onionlike odour because of its organic sulfur compounds. It is obtained chiefly from the plant Ferula foetida of the family Apiaceae (Umbelliferae). The whole plant is used as a fresh vegetable, the inner portion of the full-grown stem being regarded as a delicacy. The plant may grow as high as 2 m (7 feet). After four years, when it is ready to yield asafetida, the stems are cut down close to the root, and a milky juice flows out that quickly sets into a solid resinous mass. A freshly exposed surface of asafetida has a translucent, pearly white appearance, but it soon darkens in the air, becoming first pink and finally reddish brown.

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