Star anise

Star anise comes by its name honestly, with its star shape and a licorice taste similar to regular anise, only stronger. It is about one inch high with eight segments and a dark brown rust color. Like regular anise, star anise gets its distinctive licorice taste from a chemical compound called anethol. Star anise is the unusual fruit of a small oriental tree. It is, as the name suggests, star shaped, radiating between five and ten pointed boat-shaped sections, about eight on average. Tough skinned and rust coloured, they measure up to 3cm (1-1/4") long. The fruit is picked before it can ripen, and dried.