Shell Ginger
Shell Ginger
Alpinia zerumbet
“Okinawa's sannin”
| Species | Alpinia zerumbet |
|---|---|
| Family | Zingiberaceae |
| Part used | Leaf |
| Aroma | Sweet and soft, from the oil in the leaf |
What is getto?
Getto (Alpinia zerumbet) is a perennial in the ginger family, native to Southeast Asia and southern India, and found in Japan in Okinawa and southern Kyushu. Its buds resemble seashells, which gives it the English name shell ginger. In Okinawa it is called sannin. The Digital Daijisen dictionary records the seeds as a folk stomachic, and notes that kampo called it hakuizu and treated it as an aromatic stomachic. Fresh leaves were used for wrapping, and the dried stems for rope, straw sandals and matting fibre. Camphor and methyl cinnamate have been reported among its essential-oil constituents.
The leaf that wraps muchi
At muchi, the Okinawan observance on the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, rice flour is kneaded, sweetened with white or brown sugar or purple sweet potato, then wrapped in getto leaves and steamed. Because it is wrapped in a leaf (kaasa) it is also called kaasa-muchi, and the cold of that season is called muchi-biisa. Japan's Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries records that as the muchi steam the good scent of the getto leaf drifts through the house and serves to purify it, and that the wrapping leaves are tied into a cross shape — a san — and hung at doorways and eaves to ward off misfortune. Fibre taken from the plant is spun with cotton for kariyushi shirt fabric.
Used in Okinawa's yakuso saunas, where the leaves are simmered into steam.
Known as the leaf that wraps muchi, and used for getto tea and essential oil.
Note: this page introduces the traditions and culture around the plant. It does not guarantee any effect.