What’s in Chinese 5 Spice Powder Posted on 17 June 2012 Tags:Asia, Cape Town, china, Indonesia, Sichuan, Sri Lanka Chinese 5-Spices provides a myriad of flavour bursts and can be found in a wide variety of dishes in Asia. The five different spices consist of cinnamon, cloves, fennel seed, Sichuan pepper and star anise – they don’t need to be equal in quantity. You can find Chinese 5-Spices from any local supermarket or Chinese supermarket (click here for listings of Asian Supermarkets in Cape Town) Cinnamon Cinnamon is one of the most well known spices in the world because of cinnamon and sugar pancakes. True cinnamon is actually the bark of an evergreen tree from Sri Lanka, but most cinnamon sold throughout the world comes from a plant relative called ‘cassia”. Unlike true cinnamon, rougui (cassia bark) offers a stronger flavour, is cheaper and has a thicker texture. Cloves This spice can be used whole or ground and is found in various dishes in Asia. Cloves are buds (unopened flowers) of an evergreen tree native to Indonesia. Fennel Seed powder Fennel seeds provide a liquoricy taste and is often used to flavour breads, marinades, sauces and liqueurs. This flavour comes from a chemical known as “anethole” and also exists in star anise. Cool thing about anethole is that it’s 13 times sweeter than sugar. Sichuan Pepper Sichuan pepper, also known as Szechuan pepper, is actually not even pepper. This spice originates from the Sichuan province in china and is merely the husk of an ash tree fruit. Sichuan pepper also contains a chemical component called Hydroxy-alpha-sanshool which cases a numbing sensation in the mouth. Warning: Don’t consume in large amounts, can become poisonous to the human body. Served in Chinese hot pot. Star Anise One of my favourite spices is star anise. It originates from China and (as mentioned under Fennel Seed), it contains enethole, which creates the liquoricy flavour. Star anise is a star-shaped brown pod and used in both sweet and savoury dishes. Found in Taiwanese beef noodle soup. This was originally posted on Butterfingers. The picture was sourced from here. Related Posts 3 Wine estates to visit in KwaZulu Natal 31 May 2023 The Cape may be the wine capital of South Africa, but you can still enjoy... read more 11 alcohol-free drinks for the sober curious 26 May 2023 Ocsober and Dry January are all good and well, but how about a permanent shift... read more Treat yourself to a one-of-a-kind fine dining experience in Franschhoek 20 March 2023 If you love a unique fine dining experience, you'll want to treat yourself to the... read more PREV ARTICLE NEXT ARTICLE
3 Wine estates to visit in KwaZulu Natal 31 May 2023 The Cape may be the wine capital of South Africa, but you can still enjoy... read more
11 alcohol-free drinks for the sober curious 26 May 2023 Ocsober and Dry January are all good and well, but how about a permanent shift... read more
Treat yourself to a one-of-a-kind fine dining experience in Franschhoek 20 March 2023 If you love a unique fine dining experience, you'll want to treat yourself to the... read more