Vanilla

What Is Vanilla?

Vanilla is one of the most well known herbs on earth, and can be found in a wide variety of culinary products, and perfumes. The sweet, balsamic flavor unique only to vanilla is desired all around the world.

Vanilla is a type of orchid, which grows as a vine and can reach massive lengths (up to 25m) to climb up into the rainforest canopy. Its flower is beautiful, but short lived, only lasting a day or 2. After it flowers, it takes roughly 8 or 9 months for seed pod to ripen, where it’s then harvested and cured to then be used as is or extracted.

It originates from Mexico and South America, and has been used by the indigenous cultures in this region for a very long time. The vanilla pod, was often mixed with cacao, and sometimes other herbs to make a beverage referred to as chocolatyl, which was used in ceremonies, and daily activities to promote sexual vigor, and stamina, as well as to energize and sharpen the mind. A famous Aztec emperor Moctezuma was reported to consume as much as 50 cups of chocolatyl a day. He was known for his success with women, and is suggested that the immense amount of chocolatyl he consumed on a daily basis was at least partly responsible for this.

Vanilla is used today as a flavouring agent to reduce the amount of sugar needed, or for its own characteristic flavor. It’s also used to treat low libido, increase sexual desire, fevers, and for digestive complaints such as bloating and intestinal gas.

Vanilla is a very expensive crop, due to the difficult growing requirements, and amount of time needed to produce it. Since it’s so expensive, synthetic vanilla is also commonly used, but likely does not contain any of the medicinal actions associated with vanilla, and should be avoided at all costs. Vanilla may be expensive, but its flavour is so intense, that only a very small amount of it’s needed to deliver the desired flavour or effects.

What Is Vanilla Used For?

Vanilla is used as a flavouring agent, and mild carminative.

Traditional Uses

Vanilla has always been commonly consumed with cacao and sometimes other herbs such as allspice, chili, or honey to make the beverage known as “chocolatyl”. This rich and medicinal beverage was used as an aphrodisiac, provide energy and build stamina. The famous Aztec emperor Moctezuma supposedly consumed as much as 50 cups of chocolatyl a day. This was often considered the reason for his success with women. He was known for maintaining a large harem of women throughout his life.

Botanical Description

Vanilla is an orchid, which is the largest plant family on earth — consisting of around 763 genera and 28,000 species.

The vanilla orchid sports thick, dark green leaves, a green non-lignified stem, and whitish-green lily-like flowers [5]. It grows as a vine, and can reach up to 25m in length (100ft).

The fruit (pods) are about 5 inches long, and ½ inches thick. Vines usually produce around 100 pods each year which take about 8-9 months each to mature.

Habitat, Ecology & Distribution

Vanilla is native to Mexico, and South America. Cultivation however occurs throughout the world including Madagascar, Costa rica, Guatemala, Mexico, Tahiti, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, and Reunion island.

Harvesting, Collection & Preparation

Vanilla is not an easy crop to grow, and requires very specific conditions to flower and thrive. Due to these difficult growing requirements, and long growth period (8-9 months after flowering), it’s quite an expensive herb. It’s fortunate however that the scent and flavor profile of this herb are quite intense, and not a lot is required to deliver its desired flavor and effects. This is why it’s still a common and affordable addition to many culinary compositions such as ice cream and baked goods. Pure, CO2 extracted vanilla however is one of the most expensive products used in aromatherapy [5].

The fresh vanilla pods do not actually smell like vanilla, the chemicals must be allowed to partially ferment and allow the enzymes inside the pods to break apart the glucose and vanillin molecules where they then become volatile compounds which then evaporate into the air, resulting in a scent.

Extraction of this herb generally requires tincturing, and supercritical carbon dioxide extraction processes.

Phytochemistry

Vanilla’s aroma is built from roughly 150 individual volatiles, so no single molecule fully defines it — but the cured pod is overwhelmingly dominated by the phenolic aldehyde vanillin (4-hydroxy-3-methoxybenzaldehyde), the marker compound that makes up the great majority of the extractable phenolics. It is accompanied by smaller amounts of 4-hydroxybenzaldehyde, vanillic acid and vanillyl alcohol [5, 6]. For the most accurate picture of vanilla’s health effects the whole-pod extract should be studied further, rather than vanillin alone.

Constituent Summary

Approximate share of the dry weight of the cured pod; figures vary widely with curing (killing) method, cultivar and origin [6].

Be warned about synthetic vanillin and other adulterants such as tonka bean.

Clinical Applications

Vanilla is not commonly used in herbal medicine. It’s most often used as a flavouring agent. Vanilla may be useful for improving the flavour of herbal formulas. It’s used occasionally in herbal medicine for its antimicrobial and carminative actions.

Cautions & Safety

Vanilla is considered to be very safe, and there are few (if any) side effects when using this herb within reasonable doses.

Some people have an allergy to vanilla — which will cause skin rashes, mouth ulcers, or nausea.

Synergy

Traditional use of this herb suggests synergy with the botanical Theobroma cacao (chocolate).

The combined effects as an aphrodisiac have been well tried and tested throughout the years. Vanilla exerts most of its aphrodisiac effects through the limbic system of the brain, while cacao’s are more physical, exerting actions on the CNS, and through the inhibition of tryptophan breakdown.

References

5. Battaglia, S. (2003). The Complete Guide to Aromatherapy (2nd ed.). Brisbane, Australia: The International Centre of Holistic Aromatherapy.
6. Pardio, V. T., Mariezcurrena, M. D., Waliszewski, K. N., Sánchez, V., & Janczur, M. K. (2009). Effects of killing conditions of vanilla (Vanilla planifolia, Andrews) pods during the curing process on aroma composition of pod ethanol extract. International Journal of Food Science and Technology, 44(12), 2417-2423. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2621.2009.02043.x