Fennel is a plant that belongs to the parsley family. It comes to us from the Mediterranean, but it’s so undemanding in its environment that today it’s cultivated almost all over the world. This herb is widely used in cooking due to its rich flavor and aroma that are very similar to anise.
Fennel Seeds from Food To Live give you a chance to enjoy the many culinary uses of this fantastic spice that can benefit both your meals and health in general. The seeds contain a wide range of nutrients and can be used not only in seasonings but also eaten as a snack.
What Is Fennel Used For?
Fresh fennel bulb can be added to salads and stews. Its texture is similar to celery, so it’ll give your dishes a pleasant crunch as well as enhance the taste. Try out combining fennel bulbs with citrus fruits, apples, and leafy greens to get a veritable explosion of flavor in one of the healthiest salads imaginable.
Fennel stalks can be used fresh or dried as you would with any other herb. They make a great addition to salads and soups and can be used as a garnish. Their taste is less intense but a bit more bitter when compared to the bulbs.
Food To Live Fennel Seeds are perfect for use in any recipe, including fennel tea and water. They are a fabulous addition to any marinade and most importantly, they keep extremely well if you store them in an airtight container. This means that the package can last you for a while, so you’ll be able to enjoy experimenting with this extraordinary ingredient and acquiring a taste for all things fennel.
Our main goal is to help our customers become healthier and happier individuals by providing them with delicious and beneficial foods. Fennel seeds definitely fit both these categories.
Top Health Benefits of Fennel Seeds
If you aren’t sure about including this spice into your collection, you just need to look at the benefits of fennel seeds to understand how much good this would do to your diet. These tiny seeds contain such large doses of almost all essential minerals.
Health benefits of fennel seeds come from their components, especially the volatile oils that are responsible for the delicious aroma of the herb. These benefits include but aren’t limited to:
- Fennel seed water is the perfect summer drink as it helps relief the stress caused by the heat. This particular property is highlighted by Ayurveda, and this practice even advises using fennel seed oil for cooling and soothing massages.
- Fennel seeds are literally packed with a variety of antioxidants.
Nutritional Value of Fennel Seeds
In order to truly appreciate fennel nutrition benefits, you need to know how many nutrients its seeds contain and in what quantities. 3.5 ounces of dried fennel seeds have:
- 39g fiber
- 21mg vitamin C
- 135IU vitamin A
- 1196mg calcium
- 18.5mg iron
- 487mg phosphorus
- 1.067mg copper
- 6.533mg manganese
- 385mg magnesium
- 3.70mg zinc
Of course, eating 3.5 ounces of fennel seeds in one go is impossible and would definitely classify as ‘too much’. However, adding small amounts of them to your diet would allow you to get a fraction of all these essential elements while enjoying the fantastic flavor and taste of this spice.
Vegans and vegetarians should appreciate the high iron content of fennel seeds more than most people because it’s hard to plan a plant-based diet that would contain sufficient amounts of this element. Note that an adult man requires about 10mg iron a day, while women need at least 15mg. Every pinch of fennel seeds in your salad helps you achieve this daily requirement in a natural way.
Fennel Water for manage weight
Fennel seed water can become your best friend. At the very least, infusing your drinking water with fennel seeds would make it tastier as well as give you a small boost of much-needed nutrients. When you are counting your calories carefully, every milligram of precious vitamins and minerals counts.
Making fennel water is very easy. Put two tablespoons of our quality fennel seeds into a glass jar and add four cups of filtered water. Cover it and leave overnight. Strain the fennel seed infused liquid in the morning and drink it like you would plain water during the day.
Fennel Tea
Just brew fennel seeds in a teapot like you would tea leaves. Let steep for 5-10 minutes and enjoy.
How to Eat Fennel Seeds
As fennel seeds are a spice, you can use them as any other spice, flavoring a great variety of dishes. If you really love the taste, you can try eating roasted fennel seeds as a snack. They are crunchy and rather sweet. Just remember to indulge in this treat in moderation.
Fennel seeds are a perfect spice for marinades of any kind. Try these fantastic marinated green olives to make sure of this yourself.
Ingredients:
- 1 8-ounce jar pitted olives
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 5-ounce jar kalamata olives
- ¼ teaspoon rosemary
- ½ teaspoon fennel seeds
- 6 tablespoons white vinegar
- ½ teaspoon thyme
Instructions:
- Rinse olives in cool water.
- Combine the rest of the ingredients in a large bowl (except bay leaves).
- Put olives into the bowl with the marinade and toss so that each is thoroughly covered.
- Place olives back into their original jars (rinsed) and fill them with water.
- Put in the fridge for 2 days and enjoy.
Due to their incredible flavor and aroma, fennel seeds are also a great ingredient for baking, especially if you are making rye breads. You can either add them to the dough or sprinkle the bread before putting it into the oven. Fennel seeds have a more pleasant and sweeter taste than cumin, so they can be used as a replacement for this spice if you don’t like its flavor.
You can sprinkle fennel seeds onto any kind of salad and even sandwiches. If you are fond of green smoothies, adding a pinch of the seeds to any of them would also be a great idea.
We at Food To Live are particularly fond of fennel seed soups. In essence, you can add them to any soup, but they taste especially well with vegetable soups based on zucchini, as this particular veggie desperately needs something to enhance its flavor.
Store Your Fennel Seeds Right
Food To Live Fennel Seeds should be stored in an airtight container. Keep them in a cool dark place and away from foods that may absorb their aroma. Grind them right before use.