Star Anise (Badiane)

Chinese star anise, or star anise, is the fruit of the Chinese badian (Illicium verum), used as a kitchen spice for its aniseed taste.

The fruit is composed of a woody poly follicle with eight carpels each containing a brilliant seed. It thus forms a very characteristic eight-pointed star, hence the vernacular name of star anise.

The fruits are picked green, before being dried in the sun, where they take on a red-brown colour. The Chinese know it under different names.

The most common, linked to its eight lobes gave the Chinese name which can be translated literally by "eight horns" (Chinese: pinyin), this term pronounced in Mandarin "bajiao" is probably at the origin of the French name of badiane.

Star anise is a spice with a more powerful aroma than the green anise that goes into the composition of the powder mixture with five spices: star anise, Sichuan pepper, cinnamon, clove, fennel seeds.

In the kitchen of Hubei Province, China, it is often used with Sichuan pepper and cayenne peppers to prepare sautéed vegetables.

The aroma of star anise is mainly due to anethol.

It is used in Europe, particularly in the manufacture of anisette, pastis, ouzo or sambuca. In pastry, star anise flavors cakes and traditional cakes from western France (infused in milk). In Germany, it is used in the manufacture of marmalades. It facilitates difficult digestion, hence its success as an aperitif, digestive or dessert.