How to choose and store drumsticks (muringakka)

By the Cochimart Kitchen Desk · Published 27 October 2026

Muringakka in a Kerala kitchen: the short answer

A fresh drumstick, muringakka (മുരിങ്ങക്കായ), is bright green, firm from end to end and breaks with a clean snap when you bend it. Avoid pods that bend like rubber, look dull, yellow or wrinkled, or show hard seeds bulging through the skin. At home, keep the pods whole, dry and unwashed in a closed plastic bag in the fridge, where they stay good for about two weeks. Left on the counter in a warm kitchen they last only a few days. For longer storage, cut, blanch and freeze them.

Drumsticks turn up on almost every Kerala vegetable stall and are easy to find in the Gulf too, but they lose moisture quickly once picked, so a good choice at the stall and the right spot at home make a real difference. You will also find muringakka on our vegetable names list, next to the gourds and yams sold alongside it.

The names you will hear

The botanical name is Moringa oleifera. English speakers call it the drumstick tree after its long, slender, three-sided pods, and also the horseradish tree, because its roots taste sharp like horseradish. In Tamil Nadu the pod is murungakkai, and in Hindi it is often called sahjan. One thing that catches shoppers abroad: on a Western supermarket label, "drumsticks" usually means chicken legs, so look for "moringa" or "drumstick vegetable" instead.

When drumsticks are at their best

Moringa trees can flower more than once a year in a warm, wet climate, so a few pods turn up in most months. In Kerala, though, the pods are most plentiful in the drier months after the main flowering, roughly January to April, which is how our Kerala season calendar lists them. Outside that window you are more likely to see thinner supplies or pods brought in from neighbouring states, and freshness depends more on when they were picked than on the month.

Choosing drumsticks at the stall

• Do the bend test. Hold a pod at both ends and flex it gently. A fresh, tender pod resists and then breaks with a crisp snap. A pod that bends into a curve without breaking has lost moisture; it is not unsafe, but it will be stringy and dry.
• Check the thickness. The TNAU Agritech Portal describes very young pods as less than about 1 cm thick and easy to snap. Thin to medium pods are the tender ones. Very thick pods are usually older, with a tougher skin.
• Run your fingers along it. Smooth ridges with only faint bumps mean the seeds are still small and soft. Large, hard lumps along the whole length mean the seeds have grown and the pod is mature.
• Look at the colour. Choose an even, bright green. Yellowing, brown streaks, black spots or a dull, wrinkled skin are signs of age or damage.
• Look at the ends. Sellers often cut pods into shorter lengths. Cut ends should look pale and moist, not dark, mushy or mouldy. Whole pods keep longer than pieces, because every cut is a place where the pod dries out and decay can start.

Older, thicker pods are not wasted. TNAU notes that in mature pods the tough outer skin is not eaten, but the soft pulp and the immature seeds inside stay edible until the pod starts to ripen; the seeds should still be white. That is why many Kerala diners scrape the pulp out of each piece and leave the fibrous shell on the side of the plate. If you are adding drumsticks to a shopping list for someone else, our bilingual grocery list maker lets you add muringakka with both its English and Malayalam names.

How to store drumsticks

At room temperature: only for a few days

A 2020 trial at Bangladesh Agricultural University compared moringa pods stored in a room at 25 to 28 °C with pods kept in refrigerated conditions of 10 to 12 °C, using different kinds of packaging. At room temperature the pods lasted about 6 days, and by day 8 fewer than 40 per cent were still judged acceptable. In a warm Kerala or Gulf kitchen, plan to use counter-top drumsticks within two to three days. Keep them in a shaded, airy spot, away from the stove and direct sun.

In the fridge: whole, dry and in a closed bag

The same trial found that refrigerated pods lasted about 16.8 days, close to three times longer, and most of them stayed in acceptable condition. Packaging mattered too: averaged across both temperatures, pods sealed in thicker high-density polyethylene bags lasted 16 days, pods in thin sealed plastic bags 13 days and in perforated bags 12, while pods left unwrapped or wrapped in brown paper lasted only 8. The practical version at home:

1. Do not wash the pods before storing them. Wipe off dirt with a dry cloth; leftover water encourages rot.
2. Keep them whole if they fit. If they are too long for the vegetable drawer, cut them into two or three long lengths rather than short pieces.
3. Put them in a closed plastic bag or a lidded box, pressing out excess air, and place it in the vegetable drawer.
4. Check every few days and use the softest pods first. Throw away any that turn slimy, mouldy or smell sour.

In the freezer: for weeks

Freezing is the best way to keep drumsticks beyond two weeks, for example when a home tree produces more than you can use. Penn State Extension explains that freezing only slows the natural enzymes in vegetables, so most frozen vegetables lose quality unless they are blanched first. Its blanching table does not list drumsticks, but it gives 3 minutes for small okra pods and 5 for large ones, so about three minutes in boiling water is a sensible starting point for drumstick pieces.

• Trim the ends and cut the pods into the lengths you normally use.
• Wash the pieces, blanch them in boiling water, then cool them quickly in very cold water and drain them well.
• Pack them in bags meant for the freezer, press out the air, and label each bag with the name and date.
• Keep them at -18 °C (0 °F) or colder, and add them to the pot straight from frozen.

Expect frozen drumsticks to be softer than fresh ones; they suit dishes where the pieces simmer, but they will not snap again.

Leaves and flowers do not keep like the pods

Muringayila wilts much faster than the pods, often within a day at room temperature. Strip the leaflets from the stems only when you are ready to use them, and in the meantime keep the sprigs loosely wrapped in a dry cloth inside a closed box in the fridge, the same approach our curry leaves guide describes. Use them within a day or two. TNAU also describes drying the leaves in the shade and storing the powder in airtight containers away from light and moisture.

Signs it is time to throw them out

• Soft, slimy or wet patches, especially at cut ends.
• White or grey mould anywhere on the skin.
• A sour or rotten smell when you open the bag.
• Black, sunken areas or flesh that has turned brown inside.

A pod that is simply limp, dull or a little wrinkled is old rather than spoiled, and the pulp may still be usable if it smells fresh. Freezing will not improve a pod that was already past its best, so freeze drumsticks while they are still firm. Kerala kitchens deal with several fast-spoiling staples; the tapioca guide and the coconut guide cover two more, and our full list of ingredient guides collects the rest.

Sources and useful links

• Rahman et al., Influence of storage temperature and packaging materials on post-harvest quality and shelf life of moringa pods (Journal of the Bangladesh Agricultural University, 2020)
• TNAU Agritech Portal, Post Harvest Technology: value addition in moringa
• Penn State Extension, Let's Preserve: Freezing Vegetables
• Wikipedia: Moringa oleifera

Frequently asked questions