Nigella sativa - Black Seed

Black Seed is an annual flowering plant, native to south and southwest Asia. It grows up to 20-30 cm tall, with finely divided, linear (but not thread-like) leaves. The flowers are delicate, and usually coloured pale blue and white, with five to ten petals. Sepals are whitish, ovate, obtuse, with a short distinct stipe, puberulous. Petals have a short, thick, subulate-capitate appendix. The fruit is a large and inflated capsule composed of three to seven united follicles, each containing numerous seeds. The seed is used as a spice. Black Seed has a pungent bitter taste and smell. It is used primarily in confectionery and liquors. Peshawari naan is, as a rule, topped with kalonji seeds. Black Seed is also used in Armenian string cheese, a braided string cheese called majdouleh or majdouli in the Middle East.