Vanilla

Article By:

Strausbaugh, Perry D. Department of Botany, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia.

Core, Earl L. Department of Biology, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia.

Livingston, Gideon E. Food Science Associates, Rye, New York.

Solberg, Myron Department of Food Science, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey.

Last reviewed:August 2020

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.727200

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• Vanilla, published June 2014:Download PDF Get Adobe Acrobat Reader

A tropical climbing orchid of the genus Vanilla, and the choice flavoring obtained from the plant. The vanilla plant (Fig. 1), predominantly Vanilla planifolia (formerly V. fragrans), but also including other species (for example, V. pompona and V. tahitensis), belongs to the orchid family (order Asparagales or Orchidales, depending on the taxonomic classification). The vanilla plant is a native of tropical American forests, being indigenous to southeastern Mexico, where it was used by the Aztecs to flavor their cocoa. In the early 1500s, vanilla was brought to Europe by Spanish explorers. See also: Asparagales; Orchid; Orchidales; Spice and flavoring

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