Fennel whole

also: spice fennel, fennel seeds, soonf

Description:
Fennel is one of the oldest cultivated plants and was already used in many ways in Roman cuisine. Originally from the Mediterranean region, fennel is used throughout European cuisine, in India, China and the USA. Fennel seeds are a component of numerous traditional spice mixtures and are also used to brew tea because of their digestive effect. Because of its anise-like aroma, fennel is often used in Central Europe for pickling vegetables and seasoning bread dough. In China, fennel seeds are used to flavour pork and poultry. Indians use it to flavour pulses, vegetables and lamb.

Usage:
Cook the whole seeds in the broth. Long cooking times intensify the flavour. To make bread, crush the fennel seeds in a mortar or grind them in a mill and work them into the dough. When using as a tea, scald the whole seeds with boiling water and leave to infuse for about ten minutes. Fennel seeds taste good with beans, fish, poultry, lentils, cabbage, potatoes and braised lamb or pork.

Well-known dishes:
Alsatian sauerkraut, China five spice, panch phoron and garam masalla spice mix, chowder.

Aroma/flavour:
Reminiscent of dill and aniseed

Harmonises with:
Fenugreek, cumin, mint, black cumin, thyme, Szechuan pepper.

Origin:
Egypt