Black pepper blooms with small white flowers collected in hanging ears. The fruits of black pepper are spherical drupes with a hard shell, having a burning taste.
The birthplace of black pepper is the southwest coast of India, the current state of Kerala. Previously, these lands were called the land of pepper, and pepper itself was called the Malabar berry.
How to Choose Black Pepper?
When choosing ground black pepper, you should pay attention to the taste and color of the grinding. Fresh seasoning is always sharp and has a strong aroma, as it contains a large amount of piperine and essential oils. The color of high-quality ground pepper is heterogeneous, it consists of particles of light brown, greenish and gray shades. A uniform yellow, gray or black color indicates a large amount of impurities that manufacturers sometimes add to reduce the cost of goods. The black color of ground pepper may also indicate the use of unripe or rotten peas.
How to Store Black Pepper?
Ground pepper is recommended to be stored in a dry and dark place, away from strongly smelling products. Essential oils evaporate especially quickly from the finely ground seasoning, therefore, so that it does not lose its taste qualities, it should be kept in a hermetically sealed container. The room temperature should not exceed +25 °C.
When to Use Black Pepper?
Black pepper is one of the most effective digestive stimulants. This versatile seasoning is able to decorate any dish, starting from ordinary scrambled eggs and ending with masterpieces of haute cuisine. Food manufacturers add this spice to meat and sausage products, cheeses, canned food and marinades.
Spice is a mandatory component of most recipes of meat and fish dishes. It is added to soups and second courses of beef, pork, lamb, chicken, and also used in the preparation of homemade sausage, ham and pates. Seasoning perfectly complements dishes of mushrooms and vegetables, no brine or marinade can do without it. Somewhat less often, black pepper is added to drinks and desserts.
How Much Black Pepper Should I Use?
A standard-sized teaspoon holds about 4 grams of ground black pepper.
When preparing soups and broths, ground pepper is added 10-15 minutes before the end of cooking. When cooking fried dishes, pieces of meat or fish are sprinkled with pepper and salt before roasting. Seasoning is added to the raw minced meat during the stirring process.
The amount of spice depends on the intended volume of the dish and personal preferences.
It is usually customary to use from ¼ to 1 teaspoon per 1 kg of meat. The maximum dose of ground black pepper per day per person should not exceed 5 grams.
What Spices are Combined with Black Pepper?
Despite the fact that in the mind of any person, the phrase “salt and pepper” evokes an image of perfect harmony, a truly wonderful combination is obtained by mixing ground black pepper with turmeric. Curcumin, which is part of it, is similar in its action to piperine — it is also an antiseptic, an antioxidant and an anti-inflammatory agent.
Black pepper is perfectly combined with most spices, and is part of all popular mixes. It harmonizes well with cumin, garlic, coriander, as well as with its closest “relatives” — white, green and pink pepper.
Alternatives to Black Pepper
With individual intolerance to ground black pepper, it can be replaced with spices that have a similar bitter taste — cumin, mustard, coriander seeds, nutmeg. To make the dishes spicy, in the absence of allergies, you can use chili — paprika, cayenne, jalapeno.
Tips for Using Black Pepper
In combination with cinnamon and ginger, ground black pepper is added to desserts to give them a spicy taste. It is especially appropriate for the preparation of gingerbread and cupcakes, chocolate desserts, pies with apple and citrus filling, cookies.
This spice will give a peculiar taste to well—known drinks – it is added to milk tea, compotes, mulled wine and alcoholic cocktails.
To create a light, spicy salad dressing, ground pepper is mixed in various combinations with natural yogurt, honey, mustard, vinegar or lemon juice.
These juicy, spicy and full of flavors kebabs will not leave you indifferent, kebab in Persian “roast meat” is an Arabic dish, an oblong cutlet fried on a skewer. I decided to cook not quite a traditional kebab, as I used soy sauce, it turned out great kebabs.
Two different dishes, two flavors. I suggest you cook this simple dish with me. The fish turned out to be spicy and fragrant, thanks to a mixture of Provencal herbs and lemon zest, rice and buckwheat gave a delicate sound to the dish.
A very simple, fairly budget recipe that can be used to decorate both a festive table and a weekday morning with a cup of coffee. With wild mushrooms, of course, it tastes better, but it’s so good!
At the dacha, it’s a pity to waste time cooking everyday food, but no one canceled the meal, and rice with vegetables is a great option for dinner, for example. Delicious, hearty, flavorful, almost dietary, and if you use bags of boiled rice, it turns out very quickly anyway. To taste it?
Chicken and mushroom pie. Unexpected guests? Or do you want to cook something unusual, but at the same time 100% like everyone? I want to present you a very quick, easy and delicious pie. The ingredients for it will be found in every refrigerator.
The idea to cook this dish was suggested to me by my friend, for which I thank her very much! Interested, I looked for different recipes for this dish… and I realized that, knowing the principle, you can experiment endlessly, each time using a new set of products. Dedicated to lovers of Chinese cuisine…
The soup has become so popular that I have been cooking it for my family for more than 40 years. One of the advantages of mushroom soup with such noodles is that the soup can be eaten in a fast. Light in all respects, fragrant and satisfying, and most importantly – very tasty!
Salad with fried crab sticks. I saw this crab cooking technology for the first time. The result is a delicate salad with a piquant taste. A great, delicious and very satisfying salad! Fried mushrooms with onions, crab sticks give an unusual taste!
Dishes cooked in pots usually do not leave anyone indifferent. Pork according to this recipe turns out to be extremely tender and just melts in your mouth. A minimum of products, the result is a hearty and delicious dish. And the sauce can be used for any side dish that you want to serve with meat. I give a recipe for 2 large pots with a capacity of 0.7 liters less, if the pots are small, the recipe can be reduced accordingly.
