Fantastic fennel fields forevermore
Right now, along the highways of southern Australia, from north of Brisbane all the way to Perth, there are golden bushes of culinary goodness: Wild fennel.
From a foraging point of view, this is one of the easiest plants to identify. How? Smell. For this one, you need to reacquaint yourself with a key tool that we all have, your nose. Put it simply, if it smells like fennel then it is fennel. The scent is unique, strong and obvious as soon as you get close to the bushes. Think aniseed, licorice, or even absinthe, the drink made with lots of herbs, including copious amounts of fennel. Or if you know your liquors, Ouzo, if not I am sure you would be familiar with the sweet licorice all sorts? THAT scent.
Yes, there is a look-alike for the untrained eyes, the infamous hemlock (Conium maculatum) but it has different leaves, white flowers AND if you come anywhere near hemlock you will notice straight away a rotten stench, definitely not aniseed-like. That said, sometimes you see a dead plant, with nothing green to crush and sniff. Is it fennel or is it hemlock? Leave it alone. If it smells like fennel, it is fennel. If in doubt, go without.
So, get out for a drive and get to smell the flowers, as this is a good one to know, find and -yummy- use.
Wild Fennel – Foeniculum vulgare
Growth habit of wild fennel, by a river.
Wild fennel is harvested extensively from the wild all over the world and highly regarded in various cultures for its flavour and beneficial qualities. This is the same species as the fennel you find in the supermarket however that variety with its swollen base is a domesticated version, bred for mass cultivation.
It is quite common to see elderly Southern European migrants harvesting this plant from unkept areas of suburbia. Wild fennel is the classic plant that the old Greek ya-ya (grandmother) would make her family stop the car for. She would proceed to harvest straight from the roadside to then return home with her bounty and create a delicious traditional Greek dish.
Wild fennel is a green leafy perennial herb. It can grow up to 2 m high, 1 m across and is often seen in the wild to create ‘fennel forests’. The leaves have a fine, feather-looking appearance and when crushed they smell aniseed like. The stems are ribbed and at the bottom of the stalks they become broad but unlike the cultivated variety do not produce a sizeable bulb.
Fennel will produce a vibrant display of yellow flower clusters in summer (umbels) which turn green when transforming into seeds in autumn. It is quite common to spot dried-out light brown seeds on the plant as they stay on for months after.
Wild fennel is a master of adaptability, growing proficiently from disturbed lands, such as on the side of the road, in demolition sites or along train lines. For this reason, attention should be given regarding local pollutant and run-offs.
Young fronds are available most of the year. They can be eaten raw or used in soups and pies
Wild fennel flowers form in summer. They are bright yellow and visually striking.
Fennel seeds will start to form in late summer.
The seeds will be available all through winter.
Wild fennel as food
Wild Fennel is completely edible, from the roots to the seeds. Its leaves are best eaten when very young. I love to pull out the new shoots and peel off the layers to get to the juicy core: sweet, crunchy and so yummy raw. Older leaves can be used as a garnish or chopped up and cooked with other vegetables.
The aromatic seeds are used as a flavouring in cakes, bread and meat stuffing. See below for a recipe we use in our household for delicious pumpkin and wild fennel seeds soup. In Indian restaurants the seeds are commonly served as Mukhwas, a colourful snack served after a meal as a digestive and mouth freshener. They can also be sprouted and added to salads, brewed in refreshing and calming teas or added to cured meats such as Italian salami and sausages.
The fennel pollen is prized by chefs as a garnish fetching high prices in the hospitality industry.
Pumpkin, Wild Fennel Seed & Mallow Soup
Ingredients
1 fresh whole butternut pumpkin de-skinned and chopped into small chunks
2 brown onions chopped
250ml sour cream optional (leave out for vegan)
4 cups of Mallow leaves de stalked & chopped
Wild fennel flowers to garnish if available
2 tbsp Wild Fennel seeds
1 litre of vegetable or chicken liquid stock
Water to top up liquid to cover the pumpkin
Salt & pepper to taste
Method
1. Put chopped pumpkin, onion, stock and water into a large pot
2. Bring to boil then add Mallow & Fennel seeds
3. Simmer on low heat until pumpkin is very soft. Test with a fork.
4. Add sour cream, salt & pepper then blend with a stick mixer
5. Garnish with Mallow flower if available and enjoy the wintery goodness
Recipe, styling and image by Marnee Fox, as part of a Forage to Feast event. Learn about how to identify and forage mallow here>
Wild fennel tarts.
Wild fennel distribution in Australia
Wild fennel seeds tea on supermarket shelves
Mukhwas, a traditional Indian digestive served after the meal.
Wild fennel as medicine
Fennel as medicine has a long history. Revered worldwide, it is most commonly used as a calming tea to remedy complaints to do with the digestive system. The entire plant can be used, however, the seeds are the most medicinally active part. It is also a known remedy to aid infants in distress who are suffering from colic or indigestion.
Flavour variability
It is a known fact that wild fennel seeds can vary in flavour according to where it grows and the particular plant colony. Some are sweet while others can be bitter. Wild fennel is a great example of plants that should be approached from a caretaker perspective. When you locate a cluster growing in good condition and yielding sweet greens and seeds, look after it, become its caretaker, and the colony will reward you with sweet seeds forevermore.
See below a short video of the plant in winter, telling the importance of stories to remember and absorb knowledge>
Learning stories is great, learning local stories is best. Let me tell you one as an example. This is fennel, wild fennel. This plant is a celebrated food and medicine of the Eurasian continent, much loved by Indian, Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cultures. Once I was told a story from a Lebanese lady. She told me that the seed of this plant are also known as the meeting seeds, and when the elders of a village send the kids off to collect wild fennel seeds, it is because they mean business. The reason for that is because wild fennel is renowned for calming the digestive system, so when the elders gather to discuss the important issues of the village, they eat wild fennel seeds, to refresh their mouth as they speak, and settle down their stomach until any matters are settled.
This video was created as part of the 52 Actions project, produced by Artspace, Sydney.
Disclaimer: This information should be used as a guide only. It is not my intention to advise anyone on medical conditions, rather I'm just presenting a new way to look at the plants growing in your neighbourhood.
Let me help: if you are unsure about the identification of your plants tag me in a picture or comment below, and I’ll endeavour to help.
Reference and further research
Plant for a future database> Foeniculum vulgare
Wikipedia page with links> Fennel
Wild fennel medicinal properties overview> Science Direct
Wild fennel distribution in Australia > Australian Living Atlas
