Etlingera elatior

Etlingera elatior
	;
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae;
(unranked):	Angiosperms;
(unranked):	Monocots;
(unranked):	Commelinids;
Order:	Zingiberales;
Family:	Zingiberaceae;
Genus:	Etlingera;
Species:	E. elatior;
Binomial name
	Etlingera elatior; K.Schum.

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Etlingera elatior (also known as Torch Ginger, Ginger Flower, Red Ginger Lily, Torch Lily, Wild Ginger, Combrang, Bunga Siantan, Philippine Wax Flower, Xiang Bao Jiaing, Indonesian Tall Ginger, Boca de Dragón, Rose de Porcelaine, Porcelain Rose) is a species of herbaceous perennial plant^{[citation needed]}. Botanical synonyms include Nicolaia elatior,^[1] Phaeomeria magnifica,^[1] Nicolaia speciosa, Phaeomeria speciosa, Alpinia elatior, Alpinia magnifica.

The showy pink flowers are used in decorative arrangements while the flower buds are an important ingredient in the Nonya dish laksa. In North Sumatra, the flower buds are used for a dish called arsik ikan mas (Andaliman Peppercorn Spiced Carps)

It is known in Indonesian as bunga kecombrang or honje, Malay as bunga kantan and Thai as kaalaa.

In Karo, it is known as asam cekala (asam meaning 'sour'), and the flower buds, but more importantly the ripe seed pods, which are packed with small black seeds, are an essential ingredient of the Karo version of sayur asam, and are particularly suited to cooking fresh fish.

[edit] Nomenclature and taxonomy

[edit] Toxicology

[edit] Similar species

Alpinia galanga ^[2]^{[clarification needed]}
Curcuma longa ^[3]^{[clarification needed]}
Etlingera fulgens ^[2]^{[clarification needed]}
Etlingera maingayi ^[2]^{[clarification needed]}
Kaempferia galanga ^[2]^, ^[3]^{[clarification needed]}

[edit] Notes

^ ^a ^b Riffle, Robert Lee (1998). The tropical look: an encyclopedia of dramatic landscape plants, Timber Press, ISBN 9780881924220, p. 167
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Chan, E.W.C. et al. (2008). "Antioxidant and tyrosinase inhibition properties of leaves and rhizomes of ginger species". Food Chemistry 109 (3): 477 - 483. doi:10.1016/j.foodchem.2008.02.016.
^ ^a ^b Chan, E.W.C. et al. (2009). "Effects of different drying methods on the antioxidant properties of leaves and tea of ginger species". Food Chemistry 113 (1): 166 - 172. doi:10.1016/j.foodchem.2008.07.090.