Picked up a bag yesterday at a local Chinese supermarket. I was not aware that they do not produce heat themselves but enhance other hot spices. The aroma they produce when toasted is awesome, but they are truly a pita to work with because only the husk is usable.
The black kernel is gritty and unpleasant when ground.
I made a mix of the Sichuan pepper and Black peppercorn plus a little sea salt and put it on Diver Scallops. Pan seared them on the Weber.
Nice looking mollusks!
My girlfriend was just in China and picked some of these up for me. How do you segregate the shell from the inner berry?
The ma la mouth numbing effect, along with the citrus sour/bitter “flavor”, are what make these so attractive to me, particularly with hot peppers
Most beautiful flavor and complexity from those peppercorns.
The numbest tongue too!
curious. why can’t this be grown in the US?
i adore them even though i’d describe the sensation as sticking your tongue on a five spice 9 volt battery.
Classic sichuan dandan noodles is a super easy recipe with these peppercorns and easily satisfies my noodle cravings. Yumyum.
Toasting in a pan is a must
Huang Fei Hong FTW!
Then I use the leftovers to season hot pots and fried chicken. Even used in cookies for a while.
Cookies! what a great idea. I’ll try some gingerbread.
Ooh, sounds like a nice combo!