Pepperment

Mint was prized in Japan and China for centuries and has even been found in Egyptian tombs dating back to 1,000 BC. The Egyptians used this herb to flavor food and wine. Its botanical or Latin name is Mentha piperita (peppermint). Its Arabic name is Na’ana or nana. Its common name is curled mint, or balm mint.
 

Uses

Medicinal uses.

The herb is considered to have emetic, stimulant, and astringent qualities, and is used in diarrhoea and as an emmenagogue. Menthol is used in medicine to relieve the pain of rheumatism, neuralgia, throat affections and toothache. The local anaesthetic action of Peppermint oil is exceptionally strong. It acts also as a local anaesthetic, vascular stimulant and disinfectant. Peppermint’s oil’s pleasant cooling properties and muscle relaxing effects also extend to external use. When used topically, it acts as a counterirritant and analgesic with the ability to reduce pain and tension.

Culinary uses
Peppermint and its relatives are mostly known as popular herbs for infusions; e.g. an infusion of green mint is the `national beverage' in Morocco and Tunisia. Iranian cuisine knows several highly sophisticated recipes employing peppermint; some of these were later transferred to northern India. Fresh mint leaves are often used in Turkish cooking together with yoghurt and cucumber to make a tasty cool salad dressing. in Lebanon a very well known salad called tabouleh uses large amounts of chopped mint with parsly.