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 Rose water bottles and rose petals | |
| Type | Flavoured water |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | Iran (Ancient Persia) |
| Region or state | Asia and Europe |
| Main ingredients | Rose petals, water |
Rose water orrosewater is a flavoured water created bysteepingrose petals in water.[1] It is typically made as aby-product during the distillation of rose petals to createrose oil forperfumes. Rose water is widely utilized to flavour culinary dishes and enhance cosmetic products, and it is significant in religious rituals throughoutEurasia.Iran is a major producer, supplying around 90% of the world's rose water demand.[2]
Central Iran is home to the annualGolabgiri festival each spring. Thousands of tourists visit the area to celebrate the rose harvest for the production of rosewater.[3][4]
Since ancient times, roses have been used medicinally, nutritionally, and as a source of perfume.[3] 11th-century writings byIbn Jazla state that rose water strengthened the gums and stomach as well as being anantiemetic.[5]
GeographerAl-Dimashqi wrote that his nativeDamascus exported rose water to much of the Arab world. Some sources state that it was exported from cities in modern-day Turkey and Syria to the Indian subcontinent and even China.[5]
Rose perfumes are made from rose oil, also called "attar of roses", which is a mixture ofvolatileessential oils obtained by steam-distilling the crushed petals of roses. Rose water is a by-product of this process.[6] Before the development of the technique of distilling rose water, rose petals were already used in Persian cuisine to perfume and flavour dishes.[7] Rose water likely originated in Persia,[8][9] where it is known asgulāb (گلاب), fromgul (گل rose) andab (آب water). The term was adopted intoMedieval Greek aszoulápin.[10]
The process of creating rose water throughsteam distillation was refined byArab and Persian chemists in themedieval Islamic world, which led to more efficient and economic uses for perfume industries.[11]
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Rose water is often added to water to mask unpleasant odours and flavours.[12]
InSouth Asian cuisine, it is a common ingredient insweets such asladdu,gulab jamun, andpeda.[13] It is also used to flavour milk,lassi,rice pudding, and other dairy dishes.[citation needed]
InSoutheast Asia, rose water is the basis for a sweet, red-tintedcordial sometimes enhanced withscrewpine (pandan) and/or spices calledsirap mawar orsirap ros. This concoction is often diluted to be served on its own (asair sirap), mixed withcalamansi (asair sirap limau), or mixed with milk to produce a pink beverage calledair bandung.[14]
Rose water is used in variousdishes, especially in sweets such asTurkish delight,[1]nougat, andbaklava.Marzipan has long been flavoured with rose water.[15] InCyprus, it is used to flavour a number of different desserts, including the local version ofmuhallebi.[16]
It is also frequently used as ahalal substitute for red wine and other alcohols in cooking.[17] ThePremier League,Bahrain Grand Prix, andAbu Dhabi Grand Prix offer a rose water-based beverage as an alternative forchampagne when awarding Muslim players.[18][19]
Inmedieval Europe, rose water was used to wash hands during feasts.[20]
Rose water is used in religious ceremonies inChristianity (in theByzantine Rite of theCatholic Church and in theEastern Orthodox Church),[21]Zoroastrianism, and theBaháʼí Faith (inKitab-i-Aqdas 1:76).[22]
Depending on the origin and manufacturing method, rose water is obtained from thesepals andpetals ofRosa × damascena throughsteam distillation. The followingmonoterpenoid andalkane components can be identified withgas chromatography: mostlycitronellol,nonadecane,geraniol, andphenylethyl alcohol, and alsohenicosane,nonadecane,eicosane,linalool,citronellyl acetate,methyleugenol,heptadecane,pentadecane,docosane,nerol,disiloxane,octadecane, andpentacosane. Usually, phenylethyl alcohol is responsible for the typical odour of rose water but is not always present in derivative products.[23]
Rose petals were already used in Persian cookery to perfume and flavor dishes long before the technique of distilling rose water was developed. The person commonly credited with the discovery of rose water was the tenth-century Persian physician Avicenna.
About two centuries later, the Bukharan-born physician ibn Sina (980–1037), whose name was latinized as Avicenna, discovered how to use the still to extract the essential oil from flower petals. This allowed for the steam distillation of floral waters, particularly rose water
The origin of Damask rose is the Middle East and some evidences indicate that the origin of rose water is Iran
The dictionary definition ofrose water at Wiktionary
Media related toRose water at Wikimedia Commons
