Piper sarmentosum

Piper sarmentosum (lolot pepper, lolot, wild betel) is a plant in the family Piperaceae used in many Southeast Asian cuisines. The leaves are often confused with betel, but they lack the intense taste of the betel leaves and are significantly smaller. Piper lolot (lolot) is now known to be the same species. Under this name it is cultivated for its leaf which is used in Lao and Vietnamese cuisine as a flavoring wrap for grilling meats, namely the thịt bò nướng lá lốt in Vietnam.

Description

A creeper with an erect stem. It is 50 cm high. The creeper or vine can be 10 m long. There are very fine powdery hairs when young. The leaves are finer and more tender than Piper betel. They are brighter green with distinct veins. The leaf stalk is 2-5 cm long. The leaf blades are larger near the base. They are 7-14 cm long by 6-13 cm wide. The leaf base is rounded or heart shaped and tapers to a short tip. The fertile stem stick upwards. The spikes are opposite the leaves. The spikes hang downwards. The male spikes are white and 1.5-2.5 cm long by 2-3 mm wide. The female spikes are 2-5 cm long by 8 mm wide in fruit. The fruit is 4 angled and 2.5-3 mm across. The fruit is a single seeded berry.

Edible Uses

The leaves can be eaten raw or cooked and have a pleasant peppery flavour that works well chopped into salads. They can also be added to curries or blanched and used as a potherb. Larger leaves, which can reach up to 10cm across, can be lightly steamed and used as wraps for vegetables and other fillings. In Thailand, such leaf wraps are a favourite snack known as 'mieng kum', filled with peanuts, shrimps, shallots, lime, and raw ginger. Soaking the leaves in cold water with a little sugar for two hours before use subtly alters their flavour. The dried infructescence is occasionally used as a spice. The leaves can also be made into a tea.

Traditional Uses

The leaf is slightly pungent and is eaten raw. They are also added to curries or blanched and eaten as a potherb. The leaves are used to wrap an Asian snack dish. They are also used in soups. The dried fruit is used as a spice. The leaves are chewed with betle nut. The leaves are used as a flavouring for meat dishes.

Medicinal Uses

The whole plant is anodyne, anti-inflammatory, and expectorant. It is used to treat skin diseases, rheumatism, ostealgia, lumbago, oedema, headache, dyspepsia, colic, nausea, diarrhoea, and toothache. It is also used in combination with other plants to treat mushroom poisoning and snakebite. For medicinal use, the whole plant is preferably harvested when in flower, then dried and stored. The leaf specifically is carminative.

Distribution

A tropical plant. It grows in forests in wet places near villages and from near sea level to 1000 m altitude in S China. It does best is shady places. It grows in humid locations in forests. In Hawaii it is grown under shade cloth. Dry winds turn the leaves brown spoiling their appearance. In Yunnan.

Where It Grows

Andamans, Asia, Australia, Cambodia, China, East Timor, India, Indochina, Indonesia*, Laos, Malaysia, Marquesas, Pacific, Philippines, SE Asia, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Vietnam,

Cultivation

It prefers rich, well-drained soil with partial shade but can tolerate full shade. It likes moist soil but does not tolerate waterlogging. Frost will damage the leaves but not kill the plant once it is well established. The plant can be invasive, so it needs to be given space to roam - it does well as an understorey plant in a woodland. It makes a good ground cover under trees in subtropical and tropical areas. It thrives in the right position and can be difficult to remove because of its suckering habit. It can be grown successfully in colder regions in a hanging basket or large pot and moved to a warm, sheltered position in winter. The stems can be up to 10 metres long, though they tend to creep along the ground with off-shoots to 0.5m. A dioecious plant, both male and female forms need to be grown if seed is required. It grows in forests in wet places near villages and from sea level to 1000 m altitude in S China. In Hawaii, it is grown under shade cloth. Dry winds turn the leaves brown, spoiling their appearance.

Propagation

Propagate by seed or from cuttings, which root easily.

Other Uses

The plant grows well as an understorey shrub in woodland settings and can be used as a hanging basket or large pot plant, as groundcover, or as an annual.

Other Information

It is popular in Thailand. It is cultivated.

Notes

There are between 1000-2000 Piper species. They are mostly in the tropics. It is used in medicine. It possibly has anti-cancer properties. It has 10.1 mg per 100 g dry weight and 6.0 mg fresh weight of alpha-tocopherol (Vitamin E).

Nutrition

Synonyms

Also Known As

Aimanas ai leten, 'i: le:d, Bo la lot, Cabean, Cha phlu, Cha plu, Chabai, Chaphlu, Chhiplou, Chi phlu, Chiaobiouluo, Daun kadok, Jia ju, Julo, Kadok batu, Karuk, l(oos)t tat ph(aws)t, La lot, Lot, Morech ansai, Nom wa, Pa dan, Pa die, Pake, Pak ereart, Patai-butu, Phak i leut, Phak iloed, Phlu ling, Pipali sag, Poivre lolot, Sirih tanah, Tat bat, Ti(ee)u

References (44)

• Anderson, E. F., 1993, Plants and people of the Golden Triangle. Dioscorides Press. p 218
• Annuaire Conserv. Jard. Bot. Geneve 2:272. 1898 (As Piper lolot)
• Arora, R. K., 2014, Diversity in Underutilized Plant Species - An Asia-Pacific Perspective. Bioversity International. p 107 (As Piper saigonense)
• Bremness, L., 1994, Herbs. Collins Eyewitness Handbooks. Harper Collins. p 283
• Burkill, I.H., 1966, A Dictionary of the Economic Products of the Malay Peninsula. Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Vol 2 (I-Z) p 1782 and 1766 (As Piper lolot) and as (As Piper saigonense)

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