The Science of Spice

90 Spice Profiles

Star anise’s Latin name Illicium means

“allurement”, referring to its sweet

smell and pretty shape. It has been

cultivated for more than 3,000 years for

culinary and medicinal use in its native

China and Vietnam. It symbolizes

good fortune in Chinese culture,

where finding a star with more than

the normal eight arms is considered

very good luck. From the late Middle

Ages it was traded along the tea route

from China via Russia, and for much

of this time it was known as Siberian

cardamom. Due to the relatively

high price of anise, and increasing

popularity of Asian cooking, star anise

has never been more widely used than

it is today. Indeed, shortages have

occurred during international flu

outbreaks because star anise contains

shikimic acid, a chemical used to

make the antiviral drug Tamiflu.

Region of cultivation

Native to southwest China and northeast

Vietnam, star anise is cultivated in China,

India, Laos, Vietnam, the Philippines,

Japan, and Taiwan.

The plant

Star anise is the fruit

of a small Chinese

evergreen tree, closely

related to magnolia.

Trees can bear fruit

for 100 years or more.

Whole pods

The shiny seeds have

less flavour than the

carpels, where the fragrant

defence compounds

are concentrated.

Leaves are large,

fragrant, and

waxy, forming

in bunches

Whitish trunk

is aromatic

Narcissus-like

flowers turn

yellow just

before fruiting

Each “arm” is

a carpel that

contains a seed

BOTANICAL NAME

Illicium verum

ALSO KNOWN AS

Chinese anise, badian

anise, Siberian anise.

MAIN FLAVOUR COMPOUND

Anethole.

PARTS USED

Seed pods, seeds.

METHOD OF CULTIVATION

The fruits are harvested before they ripen,

from late summer through to early winter.

COMMERCIAL PREPARATION

The fruits are dried, typically in the sun,

until hard and woody and the pods’ points

have split to expose the seeds.

NON-CULINARY USES

In soaps, perfumery, and cough mixtures;

in Chinese medicine for stomach pain,

headaches, and rheumatism.

CHINA

INDIA

PHILIPPINES

VIETNAM

TAIWAN

JAPAN

LAOS

STAR ANISE

Liquorice | Sweet | Warm

Spice story

Ground

The seeds and woody carpels are used

to make the ground spice. The flavour

compounds evaporate fast, so it does not

stay fresh for long.

090-091_Star_Anise.indd 90 04/06/2018 15:47