DRIED POMEGRANATE SEED / ANAAR DANA

Anardana refers to the dried and ground seeds of the pomegranate. The name anardana is a Persian portmanteau. Anar translates to pomegranate and dana means seed. Anardana goes by different names depending on where in Pakistan you find it. Pakistanis who speak Urdu, Punjabi all refer to dried and ground pomegranate seeds and anardana.

The pomegranate tree comes from Iran and India. It is native to the Himalayas as well. In fact, it is the wild Himalayan pomegranate — called daru — that is used to make traditional anardana. Pomegranates were a staple food in Ancient Egypt and there is Egyptian art that reflects its status. From there, the cultivation of pomegranates spread throughout Central Asia and the Mediterranean region for thousands of years. The remains of pomegranates have been discovered in Bronze Age ruins in Jericho and in Cyprus.

Pomegranate was also carried by desert caravans and would eventually reach India from Iran in the 1st century AD. In the centuries since, it has been cultivated all over Southeast Asia and in Africa as well as in parts of Asia. The Spanish city of Granada was named for pomegranate while Spain was under Moorish control.

Pomegranate also grows in colder parts of Mexico and Honduras, where early Spanish settlers cultivated it. It has been grown in the US as well, having been introduced to California by Spanish settlers in the 18th century. Around this time, attempts were being made to introduce pomegranate trees to Britain, but they did not succeed. The failure led to attempts by British colonists to plant them in their American colonies. They would grow in the South. By the early 20th century, there were 2,000 acres in California dedicated to pomegranate cultivation.