I've been wanting to get some star anies for the rare recipe, that needs a little bit of it. But I found I couldn't buy a small amount. So now I have a pint of it. Which means I have more than I can use in a reasonable amount of time before it goes stale.

I figured I might try to make some kind of beverage and maybe some soft candy. Any tested recipes you can recommend?

Also, the store had these $0.99 cans of cooked dried peas. Ingredients are dried peas, water and iodized salt. I'm not quite sure what to expect when I open this can. I'm picturing somebody forgot to blend the split peas soup. Do you have any ideas on how to use this?

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[–] 4 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Holy crap! I did not know star anise came in pints! How much did that set you back?

My usual source is $8.29 an ounce, I can't imagine a pint!

https://www.penzeys.com/online-catalog/star-anise-whole/c-24/p-1478/pd-s

4 oz bag for $16.79, so I guess a pint would be around $67.16?

Good news, if they go stale, they're still valuable in crafting.

https://francoisetmoi.com/diy/diy-star-anise-wreath/

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  • [–] [S] 6 points 1 year ago

    I got it at the Super G Mart. It came in a Chinese printed plastic bag and I moved it to a pint for long term storage. Cost was $5. They had lots of other brands and size packages available but this was the least expensive.

    Find your local international markets and spend a whole lot less on spices.

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  • [–] 4 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

    I did not know star anise came in pints!

    I don't usually use star anise


    rather, I use fennel, which is technically not anise, but a closely-related plant. All three have the chemical that produces that flavor, though.

    You can definitely get fennel in bulk.

    checks Amazon

    1 lb bag of star anise:

    https://www.amazon.com/Natural-Friendly-NON-GMO-Estrella-Illicium/dp/B0CM1VKF5M

    $0.87 / ounce

    5 lb container of anise:

    https://www.amazon.com/Dependable-Food-Whole-Anise-Seeds/dp/B0DGHKHRQK

    $0.52 / ounce

    5 lb container of fennel:

    https://www.amazon.com/Rani-Indian-Natural-Ingredients-NON-GMO/dp/B07PX4P1WD

    $0.37 / ounce

    I also don't really need to go buying fennel; in California, the larger problem is trying to get rid of fennel, where it's quite invasive and is everywhere.

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