Fennel – an effective medicinal herb and tasty vegetable
Even the Christian monks knew about the healing effects of this ancient cultivated plant. Fennel was to be found in virtually every cloister garden and not only helped ward off evil spirits but also alleviated everyday suffering. A medicinal fennel-seed tea, using herb fennel as a versatile spice or the bulb as a tasty vegetable – fennel has much to offer. We have compiled all the information on how fennel supports your health with its effect.
Storage time*
| BioFresh Fruit & Vegetable safe just above 0 °C with high humidity | 14 days |
| EasyFresh safe 7 °C with air regulation plate | 7 days |
| Fridge compartment 7 °C | 3 days |
| Freezer compartment -18 °C | 6 months |
The key points
- Versatile application: as a tea, spice or vegetable – fennel can have a health-promoting effect both internally and externally.
- Promotes digestion: fennel seeds have an antispasmodic and digestive effect – ideal for flatulence or bloating.
- Help for women and babies: fennel tea supports milk production and relieves colic in babies.
- Rich in nutrients: the tuber contains lots of vitamins, fibre and antioxidants.
Fennel – list of contents
The effect of fennel
The list of healing effects is long. The healing effect of fennel is particularly popular in the case of mother and baby ailments. For breast-feeding mothers, fennel tea has a stimulating effect on milk production. Fennel seeds also help babies with colic and wind – the cramp-releasing effects can, of course, also be beneficial to adults.
In India, it is also well known that fennel seeds improve digestion. Here, the seeds are chewed after the meal. This comes with the additional side effect that Chewing the seeds is also refreshing – so why not give fennel a try instead of chewing gum.
The fennel bulbs, which are great to consume as a vegetable, are also extremely beneficial to health. Fennel also contains many vitamins, dietary fibres and compounds, which have an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effect.
However, there is a need for caution when lauding the merits of fennel. As is so often the case, the dose makes the poison. While on the one hand the essential oils contained in fennel (methyl eugenol and estragole) can have positive effects, on the other they are suspected of being carcinogenic. However, there’s no need to panic. To date this has not been adequately proven scientifically. But just to be on the safe side, fennel tea should certainly not be consumed by the litre on a daily basis. Incidentally, this also applies to other herb teas as well as fennel tea.
However, smaller doses may also have effects which are harmful to health for babies, small children and pregnant women – these groups of people should therefore not drink teas made of herbs over the long term.
Tips on buying and storing fennel
Use of fennel as a healthy vegetable is not yet that widespread – however this trend is increasing. Fennel as a vegetable has been cultivated so that it forms particularly large bulbs which are delicious both raw as well as cooked. By contrast, a feature of the fennel spice is its delicate leaves and its seeds, while the bulbs in this case are not very pronounced.
How can you tell whether fennel is fresh when shopping? The herb should appear fresh and not withered. Bulbs with brown areas should therefore be left well alone.
The herb fennel – i.e. the leaves and stems of the plant - are most flavoursome when fresh. Store the herb in airtight packaging in the fridge and use it within just a few days. To ensure that fennel retains its flavour, nutritional values and effect for as long as possible, correct storage is crucial. Ideally, the fennel bulbs should be stored in a cool and moist place. Fennel stays fresh for up to 3 days in the fridge compartment. A fridge with BioFresh technology from Liebherr is particularly suitable for this. This special fresh food compartment offers a constant low temperature of just above 0 °C and optimum air humidity. This keeps sensitive food fresh for longer than with conventional refrigeration. Thanks to BioFresh, fennel stays fresh in the Fruit & Vegetable safe for up to 14 days.
*All specifications given are to be considered as guideline values, and depend in each case on the type of foodstuffs and on the proper storage without interruption of the cold chain from harvest/production through to the Liebherr appliance. Should food products have information about minimum shelf life, the date on the packaging always applies.
