Licorice

Licorice consists of the dried roots and stolons of plants in the genus Glycyrrhiza (family Leguminosae) and is one of the oldest herbs, known for 3000 years.

Licorice is the extract obtained from the sweet-tasting root and rhizome of the licorice plant – Glycyrrhiza, a member o the legume or pea family.

Over 20 species of licorice plants native to Europe, Asia, North and South America, and Australia have been identified.

The most family licorice plant in the western hemisphere is European licorice or Glycyrrhiza glabra, a shrub with pale resembling lilacs grown mostly in the Mediterranean region.

The licorice plant is found between the 30th and 45th starting from the northwest part of China, followed by the former Soviet Republic, the eastern part of Turkey, central Syria, Iraq, Iran the central part of Spain and the southern part of Italy.

It is often found growing near streams, in sandy soils, and in scrubland and is sometimes quite weedy.

The above ground portion of the plant has no commercial value and is normally discarded during harvesting. The licorice root extends both vertically and horizontally. It may extend as much as 25 feet in search of moisture during the dry, hot weather.

Licorice is grown for yield of commercial licorice, used in medicine, industry and as a flavoring. Licorice is rarely used in domestic cookery, but is employed in commercial cooking.

Since plants can grow in limited regions in the world in the temperate zone of the Eurasian Continent, some countries need to import large qualities of licorice.

Commercial licorice is marketed in several forms, including peeled or unpeeled sticks, solid extract and juice.
Licorice