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Culinary Dictionary
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| Category: Herbs, plants and spices |
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Black Peppercorn | ||
 A peppercorn picked when green and dried in the sun until it turns black; it has a slightly hot flavor with a hint of sweetness; whole or ground, it is the most commonly available peppercorn.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 word «pepper» is derived from the Sanskrit pippali, the word for long pepper via the Latin piper which was used by the Romans to refer both to pepper and long pepper, as the Romans erroneously believed that both of these spices were derived from the same plant. Native: India and Indonesia History: Pepper has been used as a spice in India since prehistoric times. J. Innes Miller notes that while pepper was grown in southern Thailand and in Malaysia, its most important source was India, particularly the Malabar Coast, in what is now the state of Kerala. Peppercorns were a much prized trade good, often referred to as «black gold» and used as a form of commodity money. The term «peppercorn rent» still exists today. Origin: Black peppercorns were found lodged in the nostrils of Ramesses II, placed there as part of the mummification rituals shortly after his death in 1213 BCE. Little else is known about the use of pepper in ancient Egypt, nor how it reached the Nile from India. Nutrition Fact: Black pepper is an excellent source of manganese, a very good source of iron and vitamin K, and a good source of dietary fiber. |