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.
Arugula salad with fish, fresh and dried tomatoes, feta cheese and a mix of white fragrant and wild rice. I chose a mix of white flavored and wild rice because, first, it cooks very quickly, and secondly, it is perfect for this salad. Arugula and fish, as always, go well together, and dried tomatoes contribute to the overall flavor range. So, a great salad in 15 minutes!
Very tasty and beautiful eggplant salad. The salad is prepared simply and quickly, and consists of 2 main ingredients: eggplant and tomato. The dressing in this salad with the lemon flavor, because the mayonnaise with the lemon juice. This salad is served to the table immediately after cooking in a warm form.
This recipe came back to me recently in the recesses of my memory, as a memory from my childhood, when in the summer I often lived with my grandmother in the village. She prepared this dish from the pears that we gathered in a grove on the outskirts of the village. Served this dish right in the pan on the table. They ate it with spoons from the frying pan. That is, it was an independent dish. But in my current opinion, such mushrooms can be served with a side dish of mashed potatoes, pasta, rice or buckwheat.
Turkey drumstick baked with spiced potatoes is a recipe for a hearty lunch or dinner from available ingredients. It is not only delicious and juicy, but also such a dish is prepared without any extra hassle, simply and easily. Baked Turkey meat is tender and juicy, and potatoes are fragrant and tender.
Stuffed eggs are the world’s cold appetizer for all times. What to fill the eggs with-this is a space for our imagination. I have a spicy applesauce with grain mustard and parsley today.
I offer a delicious, fragrant and velvety soup with vegetables. A variation of the Turkish dish “Kazarma”, only with a slightly different cooking technique. Fried-because all the ingredients are pre-fried, and then cooked together for a short time.
We are very fond of all kinds of cakes, especially with the heat, with the heat. Yes and then it is convenient to take to work and warm up in the micro and.. a cozy, home-style snack is ready! For the filling, greens, cheese-what could be tastier for me personally))) This time, mozzarella+a piece of ordinary cheese, but you can change the options, even leave one green and egg, the spices will make their own flavor!