Technically a gum-resin, asafoetida is a hard substance that’s extracted from large, carrot-shaped roots of the Ferula plants.  A perennial herbs growing 1 to 1.5 m tall. They are part of the celery family, Umbelliferae. Notably, asafoetida is thought to be in the same genus as silphium, a North African plant now believed to be extinct, and was used as a cheaper substitute for that historically important herb from classical antiquity. The species are native to the deserts of Iran and mountains of Afghanistan where substantial amounts are grown.