Anise. Sweet, warm and aromatic, the
flavour of star anise is similar – but not identical – to that of aniseed,
Anisum vulgare, to which it is not even related. The bouquet of star anise
tends to be more pungent and stronger than aniseed.
Bigoli. Star anise is a spice many top
chefs love. A prime example is: Massimiliano Alajmo where it is used in a sauce
together with capers and creamed onions for dressing bigoli, a type of pasta
widely used in the north Italian region of Veneto. Or in a steam distilled
essence for aromatizing cream of chickpeas with red prawns…
Comfit. Star anise is used in China also
as an after-dinner digestive.
Duck. As well as finding its way into
confectionery, star anise also enhances dishes of meat and poultry, and teams
up particularly well with pork and duck.
Eight. How many points has the star?
Eight, on average, as indicated by its names in Cantonese “batgok” and Mandarin
“bajiao” – meaning “eight angled octagon”. Star anise can actually have from 5
to 10 points.
Five spice powder. Five spice powder, which has
spread all over the world from China (and is also used to flavour Chinese
marbled eggs) owes most of its taste to star anise, followed by Sichuan pepper,
cloves, cassia and fennel seeds.
Gourmet coffee. How about a gourmet coffee that
is simple to prepare? Just leave some star anise to infuse in it, and the
resulting flavour will be richer and more intense.
Health. This is a spice with many proven
health-giving properties: it is digestive, good for the stomach, stimulating,
diuretic, anti-rheumatic etc, etc.
Illicium verum. This is the scientific name of
the plant on which star anise grows. It is a tropical evergreen, which grows to
a height ranging from 5 to 10 metres and comes from East Asia, China and
Vietnam in particular.
Japanese star
anise. Illicium
verum, commonly known as Chinese star anise, must not be confused with Illicium
anisatum, or Japanese star anise, which is a highly toxic plant.
Keeping. Star anise keeps well for over
one year, preferably in hermetically sealed jars.
Liquorice. Star anise is often used in
recipes to add a hint of liquorice – with traces of fennel and basil.
Mother. In traditional Chinese medicine,
star anise is used as a health aid for the female reproductive system and for
boosting the milk supply in women who have just given birth. Will it really
work?
Noodle soup. Star anise is the key ingredient
in Pho broth, the Vietnamese rice noodle soup prepared from beef bones, oxtail,
flank steak, charred onions and spices.
Oil. The dried fruits contain from 5
to 8% of essential oil, whose prevalent aromatic composition (80,90%) is
anethole, as in the case of aniseed. What differentiates it from the latter,
however, is the presence of eucalyptol.
Pericarp. This spice is actually the
pericarp or fruit of the plant, which is shaped like a star.
Quasi-boiling. Leaving it to soak in hot water
helps extract the aromatic components of star anise, which therefore lends
itself to being reutilized for flavouring hot beverages such as Kombucha tea or
for making a delicious digestive herbal brew: two stars for each cup.
Red cooking. Also called “Chinese red
cooking”, “Chinese stewing” or “Red stewing” this is a very popular cooking
technique that confers a red colour to any food prepared in this way. The soy-
based sauce of this slowly braised meat, usually beef or chicken, always
contains star anise.
Substitute. In the beverage industry, star
anise is frequently used in beverages and liqueurs instead of the more costly
aniseed.
Tomato. Strange to say, but a tiny
amount of star anise (one point of the star is sufficient!) gives a warm spicy
nuance to tomato sauce, making it perfect for adding to braised meat dishes. Or
a Bolognese meat sauce!
Unripe. The fruit is harvested just
before reaching full ripeness and is then dried.
Vin chaud. In vin chaud, a spicy wine drink
that is very popular in France, star anise is an essential ingredient.
Wrinkles. Is star anise going to be the
new natural botox? Some believe this is the case and that it is sufficient to
rub the oil extracted from this spice onto the skin - and let powdered star
anise masks do the trick – to combat signs of ageing.
XIII/XIV Centuries. Star anise was first brought to
Europe by the merchant, explorer and writer, Marco Polo.
Yangtze. This is the “blue river” whose banks
skirt the border of the South China province where 90% of the world’s total
production of star anise comes from, an industry employing 10 million people.
Zanthoxylum. The genus of the plants
producing Sichuan pepper, also called “Chinese coriander”, which is neither
related to pepper nor chilli pepper, but to citrus plants. It teams up
perfectly with star anise, a fact that is well known to those familiar with “E
cuisine”, the local culinary style of the Hubei province in China.
By FDL