Product Detail 30 grams of the finest quality Black Pepper Granules. Description Black pepper (Piper nigrum) is a flowering vine in the family Piperaceae, cultivated for its fruit, which is usually dried and used as a spice and seasoning. The fruit, known as a peppercorn when dried, is a small drupe approximately five millimetres in diameter, dark red when fully mature, containing a single seed. Peppercorns and the powdered pepper derived from grinding them may be described as black pepper, white pepper, green pepper, and very often simply pepper. Dried ground pepper is one of the most common spices in European cuisine and beyond, having been highly valued since antiquity. Black pepper is native to India and has been used in Indian cooking for thousands of years. Historically, peppercorns were a prized trade commodity, often referred to as “black gold.” Black pepper is produced from the still-green unripe berries of the pepper plant. The berries are cooked briefly in hot water to clean them and prepare them for drying. The heat ruptures cell walls in the pepper, accelerating the work of browning enzymes during drying. The berries are dried in the sun or by machine for several days, during which the outer layer darkens and shrinks into a thin, wrinkled black skin. Once dried, the spice is called black peppercorn. White pepper consists of the seed only, with the outer layer removed. This is usually done through a process known as retting, where fully ripe peppers are soaked in water for about a week, allowing the fruit's outer layer to soften and decompose. The remaining seed is then dried. Green pepper, like black, is made from unripe berries. Dried green peppercorns retain their colour through treatments such as sulfur dioxide exposure or freeze-drying. Pickled green peppercorns are unripe berries preserved in brine or vinegar. Fresh green pepper berries, largely unknown in the West, are commonly used in some Asian cuisines, particularly Thai cuisine, offering a piquant and fresh flavour with a bright aroma. Culinary Use Pepper’s spiciness comes primarily from piperine, which is found in both the outer fruit and the seed. The outer fruit layer left on black pepper also contains important aromatic compounds such as pinene, sabinene, limonene, caryophyllene, and linalool, which contribute citrusy, woody, and floral notes. These scents are mostly absent in white pepper, which is stripped of the fruit layer. To maintain its flavour and aroma, pepper should be stored in an airtight container away from light, as exposure can cause the loss of its spiciness. Ground pepper loses its aromatics quickly, so it is recommended to grind whole peppercorns just before use. Handheld pepper mills or grinders are often preferred over pre-ground pepper for this reason. In Western cuisine, white pepper is often used in light-coloured dishes such as sauces or mashed potatoes, where black pepper would be visually noticeable. There is some debate over which type is spicier, as they have distinct flavour profiles due to the presence of different compounds in the outer fruit layer.
