Gurmar (Gymnema sylvestre)

Family: Apocynaceae | Edibility: Edible (3/5)

Gurmar or Gymnema sylvestre is a climbing plant of up to 3 m long with stems that scrambles over the ground and climb into the surrounding vegetation, and can be found in Africa, Arabia, India, Sri Lanka, China, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Indonesia. It has a woody rootstock and slender stems. The oval or sword shaped leaves are edible either raw or cooked as a vegetable. It has the ability to make bitter food taste sweet.

Edible Parts & Harvest Seasons

Edible Parts: Fruit, Leaves

Harvest Seasons: Early Summer, Fall, Late Summer, Spring

Flavor & Culinary Uses

taste sweet. — Leaves - raw or cooked.; Eaten as a vegetable or added to soups.; The leaves, for a short while after being eaten, have the ability to make even bitter foods taste sweet.; In India and China the bitter leaves are known as 'sugar destroyer', as the taste for sweetness is blocked for some time.

Habitat & North American Range

Secondary forest, riverine forest and dry shrub savannah, usually on sandy or loamy soils. It occurs scattered and is locally abundant and common. (Zone 10)