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fennel
Feb 19, 2016 17:40:57 GMT -5
Post by lilolpeapicker on Feb 19, 2016 17:40:57 GMT -5
It is an herb isn't it? Went looking for some fennel seeds at Agway and they did not have any, I thought they might because they have Botanical Interest seeds as well as others.
Anyway, anything I need to know about fennel? like what variety do you grow? Do they all taste the same? I read licorice flavor celery flavor?
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fennel
Feb 19, 2016 19:33:24 GMT -5
Post by desertwoman on Feb 19, 2016 19:33:24 GMT -5
Technically something is a spice if you use the roots, bulb, bark and seed and an herb if you use the leaves. So fennel would be considered a spice, I guess.
Yes, it is sort of a licorice flavor. I think of it as more like anise. And it has a sweet flavor. I find that it loses some of its flavor when you cook it. It's a bulb, with a couple of stalks that sort of look like celery., but not really.
I grind the seed and sprinkle it into greens (kale and chard) I sauté with olive oil and onions and a touch of salt. I slice the fennel 'bulb' fresh into salads.
You could also put these sautéed greens on a slice of whole wheat bread that has been grilled with garlic and a little olive oil for an Italian bruschetta antipasto. I've never grown it so I don't know its habits.
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fennel
Feb 19, 2016 23:08:12 GMT -5
Post by davidjp on Feb 19, 2016 23:08:12 GMT -5
To my knowledge there's two kinds. One is leaf fennel which I think of more like a true herb and then there's bulbing fennel which I usually think of as a vegetable.
I usually have the leaf kind growing with the herbs ands its pretty much yr round here, looks. a lot like dill. As mentioned its more anise to me. Of these there are two kinds plain green and a bronze variety www.johnnyseeds.com/p-8200-bronze.aspx
Bulbing www.johnnyseeds.com/p-6342-orion.aspx
I usually like to use it with fish but also quite often pick a few tips to make up my salad mix.
The bulb fennel I have grown few times but I find it much harder to grow to get it to bulb correctly. Basically I think its better to sow later in year after solstice so it bulbs for the next yr. Plant too early and it can go to flower. Must try more though as its. a lovely vegetable and definitely something thats great home grown. Anyway that's my experience, I know the seeds are used a lot as well, I have some for Indian cooking but I don't use them that much.
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fennel
Feb 20, 2016 10:36:44 GMT -5
Post by OregonRed on Feb 20, 2016 10:36:44 GMT -5
I grew it 1 year, the bulbing kind. I like the taste just fine, I don't like the toughness of the strings - the bulb has strings like celery. I imagine one could use it in place of celery in just about anything. you use just the bulb, and not the stems, they are reeeealy tough. I saw an Italian cook make it into a raw salad, with vinegar type dressing. she said they all grow it there, and eat it straight up like celery. I have put it in soups and stews when I have it. I bet it would be good cut into long pieces and pickled! maybe even spicy pickle. you could also treat it like cabbage and make cole slaw or sour crout with it - that would be interesting.
the bulbs didn't grow very big for me, don't know why, only grew it once. it was in the early years of my garden when it was super fertile. didn't really get bugs, and I had it in full sun. I planted starts in spring and harvested in late summer. I like davids idea tho
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fennel
Feb 20, 2016 13:51:38 GMT -5
Post by binnylou on Feb 20, 2016 13:51:38 GMT -5
We purchased some fennel while visiting daughter in Washington. We put in to a mix of oven roasted veggies and found it tasty. I grew it one year, but it did not make it to the kitchen.
I have to say that when shopping the produce section of the store in Washington, I have never seen such beautiful, fresh produce. I think the store was Central Market in Poulsbo.
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fennel
Feb 20, 2016 19:56:14 GMT -5
Post by ahntjudy on Feb 20, 2016 19:56:14 GMT -5
Mom told me that when they were growing up, they were allowed to drink a little of the wine that Grampa made, and use the hollow stem of fennel as a straw...
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fennel
Feb 21, 2016 11:07:32 GMT -5
Post by brownrexx on Feb 21, 2016 11:07:32 GMT -5
I only grew it one time and I remember reading that you were supposed to hill the soil up around the developing bulb to keep it white and make it grow bigger.
You are not supposed to grow it near dill because it can cross pollinate and affect the flavor of the seeds.
I was at an Indian restaurant one time and they had a big bowl of fennel seeds at the cash register. You were supposed to eat a few to freshen your breath (according to my Indian friend).
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fennel
Feb 21, 2016 11:21:38 GMT -5
Post by OregonRed on Feb 21, 2016 11:21:38 GMT -5
ohhh, that makes sense brown, I didn't know, and didn't do that, and I bet the strings would have been less tough too, rather like blanching celery.
I have fennel seed in my current batch of tea - a cup next to me now - with mint too - refreshing :~)
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fennel
Feb 21, 2016 11:44:11 GMT -5
Post by lilolpeapicker on Feb 21, 2016 11:44:11 GMT -5
I never heard that about fennel as a breath freshener. Interesting
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Post by desertwoman on Feb 21, 2016 19:48:59 GMT -5
I've seen fennel seed at almost every Indian restaurant I've been to. Not only are they there to freshen the breath but also to aid digestion.
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fennel
Mar 8, 2016 16:46:01 GMT -5
Post by lilolpeapicker on Mar 8, 2016 16:46:01 GMT -5
fennel seed in my current batch of tea How do you know how much to use? Taste test?
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Post by OregonRed on Mar 9, 2016 10:06:35 GMT -5
correct, I simply pour in about a teaspoon in with the other things I put in the tea, and I liked :~)
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fennel
Jun 24, 2016 10:04:58 GMT -5
Post by lilolpeapicker on Jun 24, 2016 10:04:58 GMT -5
How do you know it is ready to pick? There is a bulb popping out of the ground but it hasn't flowered yet. Should I wait for the flowers, seeds before picking?
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fennel
Jun 24, 2016 13:42:39 GMT -5
Post by desertwoman on Jun 24, 2016 13:42:39 GMT -5
I grow fennel for the seed (to use , ground, in certain Italian dishes) so I don't know about when the bulb would be ready to harvest and eat. I'm curious to know, too.
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fennel
Jun 24, 2016 15:30:34 GMT -5
Post by gianna on Jun 24, 2016 15:30:34 GMT -5
I also have only grown it once (twice?). As to picking, my guess would be to use it before it is old enough to bolt and bloom. It would probably be more tender then. It's in the umbel family with parsley, carrots, celery, cilantro, cumin.. These are also generally harvested before they bolt, unless seed is the goal.
When I did grow it, I used it raw. The bulb thin-sliced across with tomato wedges in a salad. It was both good and attractive. Oil and vinegar dressing.
But it obviously wasn't good enough to grow again, lol. It's distinctive and probably something one would not want to eat all that often.
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