What is coriander

Coriander (Coriandrum sativum Linn.), also known as cilantro  (in the US and in Canada) or Chinese parsley, is an annual herb in the family Apiaceae (Umbelliferae) that has been extensively cultivated for centuries in many temperate climates such as the Middle East, Latin American, Africa, and Asia ¹⁾. All parts of the coriander plant are edible, both the seeds and aerial parts of coriander are used as food elements, but the fresh leaves and the dried seeds are the parts most traditionally used in cooking.

All parts of the plant are edible, but the fresh leaves and the dried seeds are the parts most traditionally used in cooking. Coriander is used in cuisines throughout the world.

The leaves are variously referred to as coriander leaves, fresh coriander, dhania, Chinese parsley, or cilantro. Fresh leaves are used as a flavoring agent, and dried coriander seeds are used as spices in food preparation ²⁾.

Coriander leaves

The coriander leaves have a different taste from the seeds, with citrus overtones. In addition to volatile oils, caffeic acid and flavonoid glycosides have been isolated from coriander leaves ³⁾. Some people may be genetically predisposed to find the leaves to have unpleasant soapy taste or a rank smell. The fresh leaves are an ingredient in many South Asian foods (such as chutneys and salads); in Chinese and Thai dishes; in Mexican cooking, particularly in salsa and guacamole and as a garnish; and in salads in Russia. In Portugal, chopped coriander is used in the bread soup Açorda, and in India, chopped coriander is a garnish on Indian dishes such as dal. As heat diminishes their flavor, coriander leaves are often used raw or added to the dish immediately before serving. In Indian and Central Asian recipes, coriander leaves are used in large amounts and cooked until the flavor diminishes. The leaves spoil quickly when removed from the plant, and lose their aroma when dried or frozen.

Figure 1. Coriander leaf, seeds and root

Coriander seeds

The dry coriander fruits are known as coriander seeds. The word “coriander” in food preparation may refer solely to these seeds (as a spice), rather than to the plant. Coriander seeds have a lemony citrus flavor when crushed, due the seeds are essential oils and monoterpenoids, such as linalool and pinene. It is described as warm, nutty, spicy, and orange-flavored.

The variety Coriandrum sativum vulgare has a fruit diameter of 3–5 mm (0.12–0.20 in), while var. Coriandrum sativum microcarpum fruits have a diameter of 1.5–3 mm (0.06–0.12 in). Large-fruited types are grown mainly by tropical and subtropical countries, e.g. Morocco, India, and Australia, and contain a low volatile oil content (0.1-0.4%). They are used extensively for grinding and blending purposes in the spice trade. Types with smaller fruit are produced in temperate regions and usually have a volatile oil content around 0.4-1.8%, so are highly valued as a raw material for the preparation of essential oil.

Coriander is commonly found both as whole dried seeds and in ground form. Roasting or heating the seeds in a dry pan heightens the flavour, aroma, and pungency. Ground coriander seed loses flavour quickly in storage and is best ground fresh. Coriander seed is a spice in garam masala and Indian curries which often employ the ground fruits in generous amounts together with cumin, acting as a thickener in a mixture called dhana jeera.

Roasted coriander seeds, called dhana dal, are eaten as a snack. They are the main ingredient of the two south Indian dishes sambhar and rasam.

Outside of Asia, coriander seed is used widely in the process for pickling vegetables. In Germany and South Africa (see boerewors), the seeds are used while making sausages. In Russia and Central Europe, coriander seed is an occasional ingredient in rye bread (e.g. Borodinsky bread), as an alternative to caraway.

Coriander seeds are used in brewing certain styles of beer, particularly some Belgian wheat beers. The coriander seeds are used with orange peel to add a citrus character.

Coriander seed is one of the main traditional ingredients in the South African Boerewors, a popular spiced mixed-meat sausage.

Coriander Nutrition Facts

The nutritional profile of coriander seeds is different from the fresh stems or leaves. Leaves are particularly rich in vitamin A, vitamin C and vitamin K, with moderate content of dietary minerals. Although seeds generally have lower content of vitamins, they do provide significant amounts of dietary fiber, calcium, selenium, iron, magnesium and manganese.

Table 1. Coriander (cilantro) leaves, raw

Nutrient	Unit	Value per 100 g
Approximates
Water	g	92.21
Energy	kcal	23
Energy	kJ	95
Protein	g	2.13
Total lipid (fat)	g	0.52
Ash	g	1.47
Carbohydrate, by difference	g	3.67
Fiber, total dietary	g	2.8
Sugars, total	g	0.87
Minerals
Calcium, Ca	mg	67
Iron, Fe	mg	1.77
Magnesium, Mg	mg	26
Phosphorus, P	mg	48
Potassium, K	mg	521
Sodium, Na	mg	46
Zinc, Zn	mg	0.5
Copper, Cu	mg	0.225
Manganese, Mn	mg	0.426
Selenium, Se	µg	0.9
Vitamins
Vitamin C, total ascorbic acid	mg	27
Thiamin	mg	0.067
Riboflavin	mg	0.162
Niacin	mg	1.114
Pantothenic acid	mg	0.57
Vitamin B-6	mg	0.149
Folate, total	µg	62
Folic acid	µg	0
Folate, food	µg	62
Folate, DFE	µg	62
Choline, total	mg	12.8
Vitamin B-12	µg	0
Vitamin B-12, added	µg	0
Vitamin A, RAE	µg	337
Retinol	µg	0
Carotene, beta	µg	3930
Carotene, alpha	µg	36
Cryptoxanthin, beta	µg	202
Vitamin A, IU	IU	6748
Lycopene	µg	0
Lutein + zeaxanthin	µg	865
Vitamin E (alpha-tocopherol)	mg	2.5
Vitamin E, added	mg	0
Vitamin D (D2 + D3)	µg	0
Vitamin D	IU	0
Vitamin K (phylloquinone)	µg	310
Lipids
Fatty acids, total saturated	g	0.014
04:00:00	g	0
06:00:00	g	0
08:00:00	g	0
10:00:00	g	0
12:00:00	g	0
14:00:00	g	0
16:00:00	g	0.012
18:00:00	g	0.001
Fatty acids, total monounsaturated	g	0.275
16:1 undifferentiated	g	0.002
18:1 undifferentiated	g	0.273
20:01:00	g	0
22:1 undifferentiated	g	0
Fatty acids, total polyunsaturated	g	0.04
18:2 undifferentiated	g	0.04
18:3 undifferentiated	g	0
18:04:00	g	0
20:4 undifferentiated	g	0
20:5 n-3 (EPA)	g	0
22:5 n-3 (DPA)	g	0
22:6 n-3 (DHA)	g	0
Fatty acids, total trans	g	0
Cholesterol	mg	0
Phytosterols	mg	5
Stigmasterol	mg	3
Campesterol	mg	0
Beta-sitosterol	mg	2
Other
Alcohol, ethyl	g	0
Caffeine	mg	0
Theobromine	mg	0
Flavanones
Hesperetin	mg	0
Flavones
Apigenin	mg	0
Luteolin	mg	0
Flavonols
Isorhamnetin	mg	0
Kaempferol	mg	0
Quercetin	mg	52.9

[Source ⁴⁾]

Table 2. Coriander (cilantro) leaves, dried

Nutrient	Unit	Value per 100 g	tsp 0.6 g	tbsp 1.8 g
Approximates
Water	g	7.3	0.04	0.13
Energy	kcal	279	2	5
Protein	g	21.93	0.13	0.39
Total lipid (fat)	g	4.78	0.03	0.09
Carbohydrate, by difference	g	52.1	0.31	0.94
Fiber, total dietary	g	10.4	0.1	0.2
Sugars, total	g	7.27	0.04	0.13
Minerals
Calcium, Ca	mg	1246	7	22
Iron, Fe	mg	42.46	0.25	0.76
Magnesium, Mg	mg	694	4	12
Phosphorus, P	mg	481	3	9
Potassium, K	mg	4466	27	80
Sodium, Na	mg	211	1	4
Zinc, Zn	mg	4.72	0.03	0.08
Vitamins
Vitamin C, total ascorbic acid	mg	566.7	3.4	10.2
Thiamin	mg	1.252	0.008	0.023
Riboflavin	mg	1.5	0.009	0.027
Niacin	mg	10.707	0.064	0.193
Vitamin B-6	mg	0.61	0.004	0.011
Folate, DFE	µg	274	2	5
Vitamin B-12	µg	0	0	0
Vitamin A, RAE	µg	293	2	5
Vitamin A, IU	IU	5850	35	105
Vitamin E (alpha-tocopherol)	mg	1.03	0.01	0.02
Vitamin D (D2 + D3)	µg	0	0	0
Vitamin D	IU	0	0	0
Vitamin K (phylloquinone)	µg	1359.5	8.2	24.5
Lipids
Fatty acids, total saturated	g	0.115	0.001	0.002
Fatty acids, total monounsaturated	g	2.232	0.013	0.04
Fatty acids, total polyunsaturated	g	0.328	0.002	0.006
Fatty acids, total trans	g	0	0	0
Cholesterol	mg	0	0	0
Other
Caffeine	mg	0	0	0

[Source ⁵⁾]

Table 3. Coriander seeds

Nutrient	Unit	Value per 100 g
Approximates
Water	g	8.86
Energy	kcal	298
Energy	kJ	1245
Protein	g	12.37
Total lipid (fat)	g	17.77
Ash	g	6.02
Carbohydrate, by difference	g	54.99
Fiber, total dietary	g	41.9
Minerals
Calcium, Ca	mg	709
Iron, Fe	mg	16.32
Magnesium, Mg	mg	330
Phosphorus, P	mg	409
Potassium, K	mg	1267
Sodium, Na	mg	35
Zinc, Zn	mg	4.7
Copper, Cu	mg	0.975
Manganese, Mn	mg	1.9
Selenium, Se	µg	26.2
Vitamins
Vitamin C, total ascorbic acid	mg	21
Thiamin	mg	0.239
Riboflavin	mg	0.29
Niacin	mg	2.13
Folate, total	µg	0
Folic acid	µg	0
Folate, food	µg	0
Folate, DFE	µg	0
Vitamin B-12	µg	0
Vitamin A, RAE	µg	0
Retinol	µg	0
Vitamin A, IU	IU	0
Vitamin D (D2 + D3)	µg	0
Vitamin D	IU	0
Lipids
Fatty acids, total saturated	g	0.99
14:00:00	g	0.02
16:00:00	g	0.81
18:00:00	g	0.11
Fatty acids, total monounsaturated	g	13.58
16:1 undifferentiated	g	0.1
18:1 undifferentiated	g	13.48
Fatty acids, total polyunsaturated	g	1.75
18:2 undifferentiated	g	1.75
Cholesterol	mg	0
Phytosterols	mg	46

[Source ⁶⁾]

Coriander health benefits

Coriander leaves and seeds are widely used in folk medicine as a cholesterol-lowering agent, a digestive stimulant, and an anti-hypertensive agent ⁷⁾, in addition to its use as a seasoning in food preparation. Pharmaceutical applications of coriander have also revealed antibacterial ⁸⁾, antioxidant ⁹⁾, hepatoprotective ¹⁰⁾ and anticonvulsant ¹¹⁾ activities.

The essential oil from coriander has been proven in test tube and petri dish studies to have a strong antifungal effect against Candida species ¹²⁾. However, most studies have analyzed the essential oil from fruits ¹³⁾ and seeds ¹⁴⁾, which have a different chemical composition from those present in the leaves ¹⁵⁾. Previous studies have shown that the major components of coriander leaf essential oil are alcohols and aldehydes ¹⁶⁾ with decanal, trans-2-decenal, 2-decen-1-ol and cyclodecane as the most prominent compounds ¹⁷⁾. Most of these analytes have also been found as major constituents of coriander leaf samples from Kenya, U.S., Bangladesh, Fiji and Brazil. The mono- and sesquiterpenes found in coriander leaf essential oil may be related to the antifungal activity observed. Natural products are considered strong inhibitors of microbial activity when minimum inhibitory concentration [MIC] (the lowest concentration of a chemical which prevents visible growth of a microorganism) values are lower than 500 µg/ml ¹⁸⁾.

In the contrary, Sagdic et al. ¹⁹⁾ tested 18 extracts of plant spices commonly grow in Turkey including coriander (Coriandrum sativum) against 23 microorganisms. Coriander did not show bactericidal activity ²⁰⁾. Ates et al. ²¹⁾ studied 5 plants extracts against 13 bacteria. Coriander had no antibacterial effect to the microorganisms tested. Chaudhury et al. ²²⁾ used aqueous decoction of 4 plants against oral pathogens. Similar to our results, coriander did not exhibit any antibacterial activity to the tested organisms ²³⁾.

Pharmacological studies in animals have shown that coriander has anti-diabetic ²⁴⁾, hypolipidemic, ²⁵⁾ and anti-cancer effects ²⁶⁾. Sedative-hypnotic activity of coriander seeds have been evaluated in scientific studies in mice ²⁷⁾. Linalool, the main monoterpenoids of coriander seeds is shown to have sedative and anticonvulsant activity in animal studies and anxiolytic and sedative activity in human studies ²⁸⁾. Report also states the in vivo antioxidant activities of coriander seed ²⁹⁾.

In another test tube study, the ethyl acetate extract of coriander root has antioxidant and anticancer properties. Coriander root inhibited DNA damage in fibroblasts and prevented MCF-7 breast cancer cell migration induced by H₂O₂, suggesting its potential in cancer prevention and inhibition of metastasis ³⁰⁾. The herb exhibited anticancer activity in MCF-7 breast cancer cells by affecting antioxidant enzymes leading to H₂O₂ accumulation, cell cycle arrest at the G₂/M phase and apoptotic cell death by the death receptor and mitochondrial apoptotic pathways. High levels of H₂O₂ can produce cancer cell death ³¹⁾.

Summary

Although coriander has been reported to possess a wide range of traditional medicinal uses, there are currently no well designed clinical trials to corroborate those traditional medicine uses of coriander. Therefore we do not recommend using coriander as therapeutic medicine, instead we support coriander uses in foods and cooking.