Fennel is a vegetable that can be super versatile in cooking. Whether it's used as a garnish, in a salad, or to make chilled fennel soup, it adds a fresh anise flavor to whichever dish it's added to. When you buy fennel, you might not use it straight away, which likely leaves you wondering what the best way to keep it fresh is. You might assume that simply putting this green in the crisper drawer of your fridge is the way to go, but this will quickly leave you with sad and wilting fennel. So, here's how to avoid this.

If your fennel has stalks and fronds still attached, remove these so that you are left with only the bulbs. The green fennel parts can be easily kept in a vase of water on the counter, while the bulbs can be wrapped in a kitchen towel, paper towels, plastic bag, or in an airtight container before being stored in the fridge for up to 10 days. To keep them crispy and fresh, place them in the warmer parts of your fridge, like the door or top shelf. Also, avoid washing your fennel bulbs until you're ready to use them, as this will prevent them from getting moldy.

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While most recipes call for only the fennel bulbs, you can also keep your fennel stalks and fronds fresh and use them in fennel tea, garnishes, and much more. You can either place them in a jar of water, or wrap them in damp paper towels and place them in the fridge for up to a week. Alternatively, you can separate the fronds from the stalks and save these just like you'd store any other hardy herbs. Even your fennel seeds can be stored in a jar in your pantry to easily bring a sweet anise flavor to stews or meat rubs as needed.

Although storing your fennel the right way will keep it fresh for longer, it also helps if you're buying the freshest fennel possible to begin with. Make sure that the fennel bulbs are white without any discoloration and that the fennel fronds are bright and luscious looking. If the fronds are wilting, you might want to pick another fennel bunch. Some supermarkets will trim off wilted fronds and stalks, so try to buy a bundle with untrimmed greens if possible. You can also use your nose, as fresh fennel should smell similar to licorice or anise.

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