Wild Fennel ("finocchietti selvatici")

[JosephB]

i did a piece last fall on using wild fennel seeds. the greens are great, too, of course, but as you'll probably discover, there's no good way to preserve them (at least not that i've found). the seeds will last a long time, though. they're different than the fennel seeds you buy in the grocery. they haven't been dried, so the flavor is much "greener". it's a real intense flash of fennel flavor.

a couple of tricks i discovered: when you start to pick from a fennel bush, always taste a couple of seeds first. sometimes they've been sprayed, even those growing in the most unexpected areas. i found those had a really intense mouth-numbing quality that was not at all good. once you get them home, refrigerate them. this sounds weird, but the ones i didn't refrigerate got very moldy pretty fast. remember, they haven't been dried.

i don't remember exactly what the recipes were i did with them. i do remember a polpete that was very good. my favorite was spiking fish poaching broth with the fresh fennel seed, then pouring it over the cooked fish and refrigerating it to make a nice fresh gelee. that was a good dish, if you like fish jelly (and who doesn't?).

I have a reasonable amount of the freshly dried seeds. It also occured to me to use them to infuse a fish broth, but what I really want to do is make some pork sausages!

[slkinsey]

I have a reasonable amount of the freshly dried seeds. It also occured to me to use them to infuse a fish broth, but what I really want to do is make some pork sausages!

Now, that would be really cool.

[fifi]

uuummm... Italian sausage with fennel. Love that stuff.

I made a pot of white beans a couple of weeks ago. I had some smoked Italian sausage that I needed to use up so I sliced that up and put it in the beans. The fennel was so good with the beans, I added some more seeds. Best white beans I ever made.

[Jim Dixon]

Do you think there's any chance this stuff would grow on the East Coast? 

I don't see why not, altho' you'd risk the wrath of native plant lovers if you introduced what turns out to be an invasive weed.

I've read that substituting bronze fennel, a common ornamental, works...maybe not as much flavor, but some.

Jim

[eje]

You can grow Fennel as an annual in areas which get frost. The bulbs just won't get very big.

A great source for Italian Garden seeds is the nice folks at Seeds From Italy:

http://growitalian.com/

It's kind of tricky to get any form of Fennel to form bulbs, though. The procedure is kind of like leeks, start the plants indoors, plant out after your last frost, and when they start to bulb, mound dirt around them.

Erik

[cookaburra]

Whilst cycling alongside some mangroves nearby my home I discovered a large patch of wild wild fennel growing.You know, the stuff that you see growing along side the railway.

As it is in a quiet area where not many people go,and well away from any pollution from factories or cars, I assumed that it would be safe to use in cooking.

Does anybody know if the fronds from these plants are safe to use in cooking?

And does anyone have any great uses for them.I thought of infusing them in a fish soup.Are the fronds edible if washed and chopped?

[dano1]

only thing i'd be concerned about would be dogs and such "marking" their territory... . Fennel grows wild all over the area i grew up in.

[Carolyn Tillie]

I found some on the riverbank in Napa a few years ago. The stuff I picked was far too large resulting in a VERY fibrous, woodsy vegetable (i.e., inedible). Also, the flavor itself was extremely bitter and sharp.

Fennel is best picked young (like many vegetables). Unless you have spotted some relatively small sprouts, I wouldn't bother.

[melkor]

Wild fennel is a very different plant, it doesn't bulb out and it has a stronger flavor. The large fennel plants you find everywhere this time of year are often sprouting smaller bulbs along the sides and base of the plant. Pick the new growth and young plants. They're excellent braised or grilled. Whole fish roasted or grilled with fennel tops stuffed in the cavity is always good also.

[ludja]

If the fennel is not young anymore and the texture leaves something to be desired you can also place the stalks and leaves on barbeque coals to add a fennel scent to grilled foods. Stocks are another good option as mentioned.

If you find some tender stalks, tomato and fennel is a great combination. A reoccuring favorite dish for me is tomato fennel risotto, with or without shrimp.

[russ parsons]

wild fennel (in the us) is the same plant as the domesticated ... in fact, it is the domesticated that has escaped. fennel is now classified as an invasive pest in most states. goes to show what good farming will do, because the bases in the wild are pretty much inedible. the fronds are great, though, and the dried stems as well. one more thing--the seeds in the early fall. they are very different from the dried fennel seed you buy in the store. they are more tender and more explosive and much "greener" in flavor. you really should try them sometime.

[cookaburra]

Thank you to everyone that replied so promptly.I will aim for picking the young fronds and try to get them where the dogs dare not go.

will also keep those recipe ideas in mind too.

[cookaburra]

wild fennel (in the us) is the same plant as the domesticated ... in fact, it is the domesticated that has escaped. fennel is now classified as an invasive pest in most states. goes to show what good farming will do, because the bases in the wild are pretty much inedible. the fronds are great, though, and the dried stems as well. one more thing--the seeds in the early fall. they are very different from the dried fennel seed you buy in the store. they are more tender and more explosive and much "greener" in flavor. you really should try them sometime.

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It's coming in to winter here in Australia and I noticed that there are quite a few plants showing their seeds.Are these good to pick anytime or should I wait till they dry out a bit on the plant?Then should I dry them out further some how once picked?I assume these would be useful in a spice mix for crusting meats and fish.In general, can I just use them the in same way as everyday fennel seeds?

[maher]

i use wild fennel mainly as a bed for roasting or even grilling fish, it lends the most amazing flavor, and its all you need. add a drizzle of olive oil at the finish and a pinch of sea salt and youre good to go

if you want to eat it, the flavor is fantastic, but you have to peel off the fibrous bits. if you twist near the bottom of the stalk, you will see a bunch of twisted off strands of fiber which you just have to grab and peel all the way to the top of the frond.

start eating at the tender part at the top of each stem, and throw away the rest when it gets too fibrous.

if youre worried about the dogs, just wash the stuff well, we get nastier stuff on most of our fruit and veg from human handling every day.

[cookaburra]

i use wild fennel mainly as a bed for roasting or even grilling fish, it lends the most amazing flavor, and its all you need. add a drizzle of olive oil at the finish and a pinch of sea salt and youre good to go

if you want to eat it, the flavor is fantastic, but you have to peel off the fibrous bits. if you twist near the bottom of the stalk, you will see a bunch of twisted off strands of fiber which you just have to grab and peel all the way to the top of the frond.

start eating at the tender part at the top of each stem, and throw away the rest when it gets too fibrous.

if youre worried about the dogs, just wash the stuff well, we get nastier stuff on most of our fruit and veg from human handling every day.

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yes I believe so too about the nasty stuff on foods these days

thanks for the ideas on cooking the tender parts

[russ parsons]

It's coming in to winter here in Australia and I noticed that there are quite a few plants showing their seeds.Are these good to pick anytime or should I wait till they dry out a bit on the plant?Then should I dry them out further some how once picked?I assume these would be useful in a spice mix for crusting meats and fish.In general, can I just use them the in same way as everyday fennel seeds?

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both. use them fresh in pounded sauces or folded into little meat balls, etc. you can also dry them--this will change the flavor to be more like the commercial seeds (though not exactly; i believe a different variety is used for the seed). do make sure they get plenty of air circulating. they grow quite large and exotic colonies of molds very, very quickly (yes, you can assume this comes from personal experience).

[cookaburra]

It's coming in to winter here in Australia and I noticed that there are quite a few plants showing their seeds.Are these good to pick anytime or should I wait till they dry out a bit on the plant?Then should I dry them out further some how once picked?I assume these would be useful in a spice mix for crusting meats and fish.In general, can I just use them the in same way as everyday fennel seeds?

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both. use them fresh in pounded sauces or folded into little meat balls, etc. you can also dry them--this will change the flavor to be more like the commercial seeds (though not exactly; i believe a different variety is used for the seed). do make sure they get plenty of air circulating. they grow quite large and exotic colonies of molds very, very quickly (yes, you can assume this comes from personal experience).

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sounds good,I'll try that.

Thank you