Badia Anise Seed, 0.5 oz

Anise seed carries the warm, sweet licorice note that runs through Mediterranean baking and after-dinner drinks. The flavor sits between fennel and star anise — softer, more floral — and it works as readily in a cookie as in a braise.

Common Uses

Fold into pizzelle, biscotti, springerle, and Italian Easter bread. Crush into pork sausage and meatball mixes. Steep in syrups for poached pears and figs. Toast and grind into spice rubs for roast pork shoulder. Add a pinch to tomato sauces for sausage-and-pepper subs, or to fish stews like bouillabaisse where it echoes the pastis.

Cuisine Context

Essential in Italian baking — particularly through the Christmas and Easter seasons — and across the broader Mediterranean: Spanish anís cookies, French pain d'anis, Greek paximadia, and Lebanese ka'ak. It's also the flavor behind ouzo, sambuca, and arak, which is why it belongs in any dish meant to pair with them.

Pro Tip

Toast the seeds in a dry skillet for 30 seconds before crushing. Heat wakes up the volatile oils and turns the licorice note from sharp to round.

Ships from Doral, FL.