Spice Nest
What follows is a Spice Nest article that looks at the spice Anise and some of its uses.
Anise
Anise (latin name: Pimpinella anisum), is a tall flowering plant belonging to the Apiaceae family, which is native to countries in the eastern Mediterranean region as well as southwest Asia.
Anise contains liquorice-like components and is sweet and highly aromatic. Anise is used in many different forms as a flavouring spice in cooking, confectionary making, baking and making alcoholic beverages.
For use in making confectioneries, anise is probably best known for aniseed balls in Great Britain, aniseed wheels in New Zealand, pfeffernusse in Germany, pizzelles in Italy and knotts in Norway.
Aniseed is used to produce several potent alcoholic drinks in countries around teh world. One of the most popular of these is Pernod, made in France. In Greece, anise is used to make Ouzo. In Turkey it is used to make Raki. The Italian Sambuca is also derived from anise, as is the Mexican drink "atole de anís" or "champurrado" which is a hot chocolate type of drink. The spirit drink known as Absinthe is also based on anise, as is the Arabic Arak. In the United States, "Virgil's Root Beer" is a dferived from anise. In Colombia, anise is added to the national drink "Aguardiente," whose distinctive flavor is created, depending upon the region, by more or less anise being added. In Thailand it is also used to flavour certain teas.
Anise is also used to make the dough in the preparation of the Peruvian dessert "Picarones".
In popular Indian cuisine, there is no distinction made between anise and fennel and the same name is usually given to them both (saunf). In this respect, anise is added to certain Indian dishes to increase the sweetness of the flavour.
Anise should not be confused with the similar sounding Star Anise, which has a similar flavour and aroma but is from a completely different plant (see Star Anise).
Janice White
Spice Nest
