Aniseed Balls
A sweet that takes ten minutes to finish.
- CategoryHard Boiled
- First appeared1800s
- CountryBritain
- How it is madePannedCompressed
- DietaryVeganVegetarianHalal
What it is
A small hard sphere with a strong aniseed flavour, built up in layers so it changes colour as you suck it, with a tiny seed at the centre. Not a sweet to chew, and not a sweet to hurry.
Taste
Where it comes from
Aniseed balls are one of the oldest British sweets still sold, made by the comfit method used since the Middle Ages. Aniseed was originally used medicinally, for digestion and coughs, and the sweet sits in the same tradition as cough candy and army and navy tablets. They were sold by the ounce from jars in every sweet shop and were valued precisely because they lasted.
What it's made of
A seed or a piece of hardened sugar at the centre is coated in a rotating pan with layer after layer of sugar syrup flavoured with aniseed oil, then polished with carnauba wax for the shine.
Ingredients and allergens
Ingredients
Dextrose, flavourings, maltodextrin, anticaking agent: magnesium stearate; modified starch, colours: E129, E151; glazing agent: carnauba wax.
Warning: E129 may have an adverse effect on activity and attention in children.
Allergens
No allergens in the ingredients
