Star Anise

The star shaped pericarps of a tree from Vietnam and South China; fruit of Illicium verum, also known as star anise; Chinese star anise; Chinese anise. See also anise.

Overview

STAR ANISE is a culinary spice, cultivated for its pericarp. It is yielded from the plant Illicium verum Hook.f., a tree in the Schisandraceae family, growing in subtropical biome, with a native range of China (S. & W. Guangxi) to N. Vietnam.¹

It is used primarily in meats, desserts; colic. Its aroma is described as bitter, licorice-like, with a heat index of 3.²

See more in ( Citation: POWO, 2024 POWO (2024). Plants of the world online. Facilitated by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved from http://www.plantsoftheworldonline.org/ ; Citation: Petruzzello, 2021 Petruzzello, M. (2021). List of herbs and spices. Retrieved from https://www.britannica.com/topic/list-of-herbs-and-spices-2024392 ; Citation: Wyk, 2014 Wyk, B. (2014). Culinary herbs and spices of the world. University of Chicago Press, joint publication with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. ; Citation: Dalby, 2000 Dalby, A. (2000). Dangerous tastes: the story of spices. University of California Press. ; Citation: Hill, 2004 Hill, T. (2004). The contemporary encyclopedia of herbs and spices: Seasonings for the global kitchen. J. Wiley. )

Illustration of Illicium verum from Köhler’s Medizinal-Pflanzen ( Citation: 1887 Köhler, H. (1887). Köhler’s Medizinal-Pflanzen in naturgetreuen Abbildungen mit kurz erläuterndem Texte: Atlas zur Pharmacopoea germanica, austriaca, belgica, danica, helvetica, hungarica, rossica, suecica, Neerlandica, British pharmacopoeia, zum Codex medicamentarius, sowie zur Pharmacopoeia of the United States of America. Franz Eugen Köhler. Retrieved from https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/bibliography/623 ) II 117*.

Distribution

Native and introduced habitats of Illicium verum³

Native areas:       China Southeast, Vietnam

Introduced areas: China South-Central, Cambodia

Bibliography