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Szechuan or Sichuan peppercorns, source?


Recoil Rob

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There are hundreds of offerings on Amazon, I tried to sort by # of stars in a review but a 5 start review means nothing when there are less than 10 reviews.

 

The quality of this stuff varies quite a bit, anyone have personal experience purchasing and using Szechuan peppercorns?

 


thanks,

Rob

My problem lies in reconciling my gross habits with my net income.

- Errol Flynn

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I can't help you with buying Sichuan pepper in New York, but my advice is always to buy in small quantities (as with all spices) and try them. Sichuan pepper loses its bite quite quickly.

 

I had often eaten Sichuan food before I came to China, but wasn't prepared for the stunning punch in the taste buds of real fresh peppercorns.

 

Surely, In NY there are Asian markets where you will probably do better than Amazon. No?

Edited by liuzhou (log)

...your dancing child with his Chinese suit.

 

The Kitchen Scale Manifesto

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the Test Kitchen recently tasted several brands  you could get via mail order.

 

if there is no chinatown near you ......

 

Penzey's came in second  and 

 

came in first  for mouth zing.

 

probably nothing like the Real Zing you can get in China.

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I'm not in NYC, but there's a large market about an hour away, I'll see what they have.

 

How long will they keep, a few months, 6 months? I could try Penzey but wonder how old they are to start with....

My problem lies in reconciling my gross habits with my net income.

- Errol Flynn

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if there is a Penzey's store near you, the have little containers of all their spices and blends that you can try in the shop.

 

at least the one near me that Ive been to does.

 

you could check the zing !

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51 minutes ago, Recoil Rob said:

I'm not in NYC, but there's a large market about an hour away, I'll see what they have.

 

How long will they keep, a few months, 6 months? I could try Penzey but wonder how old they are to start with....

 

Your question is kind of unanswerable. The key is what you mention - how old are they to start with?

I buy in 25 gram packs which last me about two months maximum, but then I may use more than most. I wouldn't be interested in 6 month old. But then I always buy from the same supplier and know that they turn those things round regularly. It's just like anything else. You have to find a supplier you trust, then support them. I still think you market is the best bet, but what do I know? I've never been in your part of the world.

...your dancing child with his Chinese suit.

 

The Kitchen Scale Manifesto

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