Petai (Parkia speciosa) is a species of pod-bearing tree in the family Fabaceae, native to Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, and Thailand. It is also known as Stink bean, Sataw, Sator, Twisted cluster bean, Bitter bean, Yongchaa, Kampai, Petai papan, U'pang, and Chou dou. The genus name Parkia is to honor Mungo Park, a Scot who twice-explored the interior of West Africa, while the epithet speciosa is Latin word for beautiful or showy.
Petai tree grows 15-40 m tall, with a trunk diameter of 50-100 cm. It begins to bear fruit after 7 years of planting. Branchlets are hairy with bi-pinnate leaves on 2-6 cm long stalk, with 7-15 mm diameter gland above stalk base. There are 10-19 pairs of pinnae, 5-9 cm long, each with 31-38 pairs of opposite linear leaflets. The leaflets are 5-9 mm long, 2mm wide, with rounded tips and small pointed lobe at the base. The creamy white, small, light-bulb shaped flowers are produced in clusters and hang at the end of long stalk. They are pollianted by bats, and birds disperse the seed pods. The pods are large, 35-55 cm long, 3-5 cm wide, straight or twisted, dangling in a small bundle, with each pod containing 10-18 almond-shaped seeds. The pods are initially green turning black. when young, the pods are flat because they are not yet develop.
The young leaves and fresh parts of the flower stalks can be eaten raw. The foul-smelling seeds are used as a vegetable, and half-ripe pods are pickled in brine. Petai is sold in various forms, such as in bunches, in pods, seeds or petai seeds packed in plastic bags. Some are sold in the form of pickled in brine, or in the frozen form. Petai can be eaten raw, boiled, grilled, roasted, or baked. The seeds are often prepared using strong-flavored ingredient, such as fermented fish, shrimp paste, dried shrimp, and garlic, or added to curry. Like mature broad beans, petai have to be peeled before cooking.
Petai earned its nickname 'Stink bean' due to its strong and pervasive smell that lingers in the mouth and body, and a strong-smelling urine and fart which can give effect to 2 days after eating petai.
Petai are said to be beneficial in treating depression, diabetes, obesity, constipation, premenstrual syndrome, and high blood pressure.
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