Paan - Varieties

Varieties

Some examples of paan's numerous variations are:

Tambaku paan

Betel leaf filled with powdered tobacco and spices

Paan supari / paan masala / sada paan

Betel leaf filled with a mixture of chopped or coarsely ground areca nuts and other spices

Meetha paan / sweet paan

Betel leaf with coconut, fruit preserves, gulkand (rose petal preserves, various spices. May also include maraschino cherry. Alternatively, South Asian sweet paan may contain candied fruits and/or candy-coated fennel seeds.

Trento / olarno paan

A mint-flavoured preparation served with potatoes

Bengali paan is known as deshi mahoba, and has a delicate flavour. Maghai paan and jagannath paan are the signature varieties of Varanasi.

The flavour and potency of paan depends, too, on the betel cultivar used, and the age of the plant at harvest. In South India, paan prepared from small and fragile leaves is called chigrlayele. In India, black paan leaves—ambadi and kariyele, which are thicker than the green leaves—are often chewed with tobacco.