Make yourself a batch of this homemade Chinese five spice – so much more fragrant than the store-bought version! To get the best flavour from this dried spice combo, try and use it within a year.
7 whole star anise
1 stick cinnamon, broken into small pieces
12 whole cloves
1 tbsp whole fennel seeds
1 tbsp whole Sichuan peppercorns
Place the star anise, cinnamon and cloves in a dry frying pan over medium-high heat and cook, stirring and shaking the pan, for 4-5 minutes or until fragrant and just starting to smoke. Remove from heat and transfer the spices to a plate or bowl and allow to cool. Now do the same process with the fennel seeds and Sichuan peppercorns but these will only take 2-3 minutes.
Use a coffee or spice grinder to grind to a fine powder. Sieve to remove any larger pieces of spices and simply remove them with a spoon. Store in an airtight container.
