Peppercorns

[jaybee]

  Description: Pink peppercorns are actually dried berries from a rose plant but are very different from what is called "pink berries". They have a mild, slightly sweet flavor compared to black peppercorns. They can be used to flavor sauces, meats, and fish and are also common in a combination of other peppercorns, like our Peppercorn Medley.

Though the FDA has approved pink peppercorns for eating, some people believe that they can cause health hazards when eating too many.

From www.myspicer.com

[jaybee]

http://www.penzeys.com/cgi-loc....1527141

Everything Penzey's has to say about peppercorns.

Suvir, I have the impression you know a great deal about peppercorns.  It's interesting how much discussion your question prompted.

[Adam_Balic]

  Description: Pink peppercorns are actually dried berries from a rose plant but are very different from what is called "pink berries". They have a mild, slightly sweet flavor compared to black peppercorns. They can be used to flavor sauces, meats, and fish and are also common in a combination of other peppercorns, like our Peppercorn Medley.

Though the FDA has approved pink peppercorns for eating, some people believe that they can cause health hazards when eating too many.

From www.myspicer.com

Difficult to know if they were implying that PPC were a type rose-hips or belonged to the rose plant group (like strawberries). The species ground in Reunion is related to the Cashew, I'm not sure how closely related this group is the roses.

[Jinmyo]

What I'd like to see is if our dear Suvir can ever hold back from politely replying to every post in a thread so that every thread he begins has 15 to 30 posts, half of them by him, and the last post always his.

You can see why the India Board is such a great place.  

[Wilfrid]

I would like to thank Suvir for the information and for setting a good example to those who come only to mock (tommy and Liza, I think that means you).

KIDDING, okay?

[mamster]

Suvir, I don't have any pink peppercorns on hand, or I already would have done a taste test.  But there is a spice store in downtown Seattle that I keep meaning to get to, and when I do I'll get some pinks and see what they're about.

[Suvir Saran]

Let us know what you see inside them.  And do open them and the black ones very carefully.  You do not want to crush what is inside.

They really are different.  But in taste, the difference is subtle.

[MsRamsey]

In India white pepper was usually used in sauces that were cream based and you would not want the black powder to show.  White peppercorns are not as subtle as black.  So, they are used in small amounts.

Very interesting!  I remember an episode of the Julia Child-Jacques Pepin show not long ago in which their mock argument was about white and black pepper.  Jacques used black pepper in a light-colored sauce, and Julia admonished him for not using white pepper, I gathered for aesthetic reasons.  Jacques countered that he wanted his sauce to actually have some flavor, insinuating that white pepper was too mild!

[Suvir Saran]

And we believe in India and others around the world as well, that white peppercorn is even more pungent than black peppercorn.

So who knows who was right in that argument? For aesthetic reasons, Julia was correct.  For flavor purposes, I think Mr. Peppin may need to study spices more closely.  Unless he wanted to have more subtle spicing.  In which case, black is the better choice.  

Black peppers are more subtle and less hot than white.  But white pepper is far from mild.  Calling white pepper,  mild compared to black pepper is factually incorrect.

[Jinmyo]

Suvir, you're right. But white pepper has a floral component that black pepper doesn't. So Jacques was right as well.  

[Suvir Saran]

Never heard that one Jinmyo.. actually black peppercorn is more aromatic.

But you are a consummate diplomat I see.

And also naughty when you have to.

[Huevos del Toro]

This is from the McCormic site:

Pink Peppercorns Botanical Origins:

Pink Peppercorns (Baies roses) are berries native to the Island of Reunion. They are not related to Piper nigrum, the plant which produces black and white pepper and green peppercorns. .

Pink Peppercorns are the berries of the Brazilian pepper or Florida Holly tree. Pink Peppercorns are much like black pepper; but in addition to their lovely pink color, they also have a distinct, slightly sweet, and fragrant quality

Hot, pungent, slightly sweet, and with a pleasant bite, Pink Peppercorns are the perfect garnish for a host of foods, including sauces, dressings, and dips. Pink peppercorns are excellent with steak or chicken and are especially delicious when added to melted butter for vegetables, rice, or pasta.

[John Whiting]

Suvir writes:

Peppercorns are considered the King of Spices.  In fact in old days this spice was traded as currency.  It was the demand in Europe for the Indian peppercorn that made Vasco da Gama discover a sea route to India.

There's a wonderful book on the spice trade by Edward Dalby, titled _Dangerous Tastes: the Story of Spices_, British Museum Press, 2000. It was a Guild of Food Writers prizewinner for that year.