• Habitat: Tree

• Occurrence: Roadside, Forest Area, Farm Bunds, Hilly Regions

• Season of Availability: March to June

• Geography: Indian Subcontinent, Myanmar

• Method of Propagation: Seed and vegetative propagation

• Part used for Propagation: Seeds, especially ones dispersed by birds and grafts and budding
  

• Edible Parts: Seeds, Fruits & Flowers
  

• Can be Eaten Raw: Yes

• Raw: Yes

• Ripe: Yes

• Both Raw & Ripe: Yes

• Dangerous Form to Consume: N/A

• As Food: Dried Flowers are cooked and consumed in various dishes; Buttery Oil extracted from Mahua Seeds is used for Daily Cooking; Unripe fruits are cooked into a vegetable
  

• As Medicine: Mahua flowers are considered analgesic, diuretic, a cooling agent, aphrodisiac, astringent and used to treat tonsillitis, pharyngitis and bronchitis.
  
  
  
• Cooking Without Prior Boiling: Yes

• Boiling Before Cooking: Not Required

• Pickling: No

• Brining: No

• Fermenting: Yes, alcohol

• Drying for later Consumption: Yes; Flowers

• Overall Method: Cook flowers with curd; flowers washed in water boiled down into a syrup and mixed with rice and dried flowers; flowers boiled for hours then softened and eaten with tamarind seeds; pound dried flowers into a flour and mix with water to make cakes.
  
  

• Nutritional Benefit: Rich in healthy fats; Natural sugars

• Medicinal Benefit: - Good Amount of Vit. A & C
  - Cooling Agent
  - Emollient Properties
  - Diuretic
  - Imparts Good Energy Levels

• Tribal Wisdom: - Seeds oil is applied to aches and pains in the body
  - Dried flowers are boiled in milk and taken to treat nerve weakness
  - Flower juice is used to treat hypertension and hiccups
  

• Tribal Recipe / Usage: MAHUA KOSHIMBIR:
  
  Cooking Time: 15 min Serves: 2 Cuisine: Tribal
  
  INGREDIENTS
  25 gms Dried Mahua Flower, Cleaned & Soaked for 15 mins
  1 Tomato, Chopped
  1 Cucumber, Chopped
  1 Onion, Chopped
  1 Green Chili, Chopped Finely
  7-8 Sprigs of Coriander / Cilantro, Chopped
  1 Pod Tamarind, Deseeded & Chopped Finely
  A Squeeze of Lime
  Salt to Taste
  
  METHOD
  Rehydrate Soaked Dried Mahua Flower by boiling them in water for 10 mins.
  Drain the Water.
  Mix the Mahua Flower, Tomato, Cucumber, Onion, Coriander and Chili.
  Add Salt, Tamarind and Lime to taste.
  Serve as an Accompaniment.
  
  ** One can also add Curd to make Dahi Koshimbir
  

Good Amount of Vit. A & C, Cooling Agent, Emollient Properties, Diuretic, Imparts Good Energy Levels, Helps cure excessive menstrual bleeding, Rheumatic pains, Digestive disorders, aphrodisiac