Black pepper corn

During the Middle Ages, cultivating a peppercorn plant was more valuable than gold. These rare plants were coveted for their value as a condiment (disguising a spoiled meat taste) and medicinal purposes. The exotic appeal of the plant still holds today. Peppercorn is a slow-growing, woody perennial flowering vine that takes about four years to reach blooming and fruiting size. Plants reach their peak at seven years and can remain productive in fruiting for up to 20 years. It should only be grown outside in tropical zones (or in temperature controlled greenhouses). If temperatures drop below 65 F, they stop growing. Frost kills the plant. Peppercorn can grow up to 13 feet long on supporting trees, poles, or trellises. It is a spreading vine, rooting readily where trailing stems touch the ground. Its flower stalks with little tiny flowers grow up to 6 inches tall, looking like pendulous spikes. The flowers develop their fruits as drupes, appearing in immature green bunches, much like grapes. Botanical Name Piper nigrum Common Name Peppercorn plant Plant Type Tropical perennial vine Mature Size 10 to 30 feet Sun Exposure Full sun Soil Type Rich and loamy Soil pH 6.0 to 7.0 (slightly acidic to neutral) Bloom Time Summer Flower Color White Hardiness Zones 12 (USDA) Native Area India, Sri Lanka Temperature and Humidity Peppercorn plants are classified as zone 12 plants, which means that they need hot temperatures to maintain health. Plants will stop growing when temperatures dro...

In a western kitchen, the thinking tends to be that everything gets salt and peppered. But to me, pepper is an actual flavour and I use it only when I want a pepper taste – it’s not something I need to have on every single thing. Thai cooking traditionally favours white pepper, although you’ll notice in some of my recipes I often reach for the black pepper, too. So what are the types of peppercorn? And what are Sichuan peppercorns, commonly used in dishes such as my You may not have been aware, but black and white peppercorns are actually from the same plant. It’s only the way they’re harvested and processed that divides them. If you take a close-up look at them, you’ll notice white peppercorns are smoother and smaller, while black peppercorns actually have a super-wrinkly outside. That’s because black ones are dried as soon as they’re picked, which gives them that darker, crinkly appearance. And white ones? They’re soaked first before the drying stage, so the outer layer comes off. I find the flavour is more subtle and less harsh. When you go to buy white peppercorns, look for ones that are creamy white. You don’t want ones that are bright white (they may have had chemicals added to them to give them that bleached appearance) or beige. The pepper plant produces three peppercorn varieties: black peppercorns, white peppercorns and green peppercorns. Note: there are also pink peppercorns, but these aren’t from the pepper plant. They actually come from a variety of rose, and ...

This is a continuation of my **In ancient times, black pepper was considered the “King of Spices” and it was more valuable than gold. One’s social standing was even measured by how much black pepper was owned by the household. **One of the reasons it was so valuable was that Black peppercorns were a closely guarded secret by the Arab traders that traded them to the Western world.This increased the desire for the black pepper, so that in medieval times, some European countries even used it as a currency. **Today, it is possible to find This post is about How to Grow Black Peppercorns. I have also written about the How to Grow Black Peppercorns **Black Peppercorns are similar to grapes, as they both grow on perennial vines. Pepper vines can grow to heights of over 30 feet and can become unruly if not properly taken care of. You can trellis the vines for a look similar to that of grapevines but you can only have them outdoors in zones 10 or higher, otherwise, you can grow them indoors, similar to the **The pepper vines have large, shiny leaves with spiky stalk-like clusters called ‘catkins’ that are filled with the fruit (the peppercorns) of the vine. After the peppercorns bud, they turn dark green, which is when they are to be picked and dried. ** Peppercorns can be slow growing and take a few years to start flowering, so if you buy a small plant and especially if you are growing by seed, you can encourage growth by keeping the plant under bright light and warmer than 65 deg...

Different Types of Peppercorn, Pepper, Their Flavors and Substitutions Learn all about the different types and varieties of peppercorns. From the common black, through white and green, to the more esoteric pink and red, and even some peppers that aren’t from peppercorns at all. With origins, flavor profile, and uses, there’s a lot discussed here. This article summarizes the different pepper varieties, how to use them, and useful substitutions. Pepper is a mainstay of adding flavor during many forms of cooking, including barbecue and grilling, so this is stuff you really will benefit from knowing. The best analogy I can think of for the world of spices is the Marvel Comics Universe — it’s vast and complicated, they seem to add new names to the roster constantly, and it’s the rare individual that knows them all. Well, to extend the metaphor, maybe to the breaking point, pepper is the Iron Man of spices. It’s one of the most familiar names, and it shows up in basically everything. But even Iron Man has many different versions — and so do peppercorns. Let’s get to know the variety of peppercorns available to the discerning chef or griller and when to use each. We’ll look at where each comes from, their flavor, and their relative costs. Plus, we’ll share what to do when you’re missing a peppercorn from your recipe and need a substitute. All set? Peppercorns, assemble! Contents (Jump to Topic) • 1 Why is This Information Useful? • 2 Pepper Vs Peppercorn • 3 Peppercorn Varieties ...

There's no shortage of places to get your black pepper from; as one of the world's most popular spices, it's grown all across the world's spice regions, from India to Indonesia to Ecuador and Brazil. We don't talk much about terroir when it comes to spices, but it's worth thinking about. After all, peppercorns are fruits just like grapes, and soil, growing conditions, and variety of peppercorn are all going to have an impact on flavor profile. How strong are these flavor differences, and how do they pan out with food? We tasted peppercorns from seven major growing regions to find out. This isn't a taste test in our usual sense—we weren't trying to find the best peppercorns—but rather an effort to answer those questions, and in so doing put together an informal guide to the great wide world of black pepper. The Results Perhaps our most interesting discovery was the low correlation between flavor and aroma, both in terms of intensity and tasting characteristics. Some peppers had knock-you-down aromas but mild flavors; others bore fruity, floral aromas but stronger, spicier tastes. That gives you a lot of options when choosing your pepper: do you want it there as a strong flavor or a light aromatic accent? And it makes for interesting blending options: if your ideal pepper has a citrusy aroma, roasted flavor, but also intense heat, you can combine different peppercorns in a grinder for a house blend. Here are all the peppers we tasted, with notes on each. They're listed here ...