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CUISINE: Sichuan pepper, Szechwan pepper, Szechuan pepper or Chinese pepper, a common spice used in Asian cuisine
AROMA: Sichuan pepper has a unique aroma and flavor that is not hot or pungent like black, white or chili peppers.
SPICE: Szechuan Peppercorns are a native Chinese spice with a unique citrusy and slightly wood-infused pepper flavor and a strong heat that has a mild numbing effect on the tongue.
USE: Use in rubs for meat, poultry or seafood. It can also be added to sauces for noodle or stir fry dishes. An ingredient in five spice powder.

Description

Sichuan pepper, Szechwan pepper, Szechuan pepper or Chinese pepper, a common spice used in Asian cuisine, is derived from at least two species of the global genus Zanthoxylum, including Z. simulans and Z. bungeanum. The botanical name of the genus is composed of two Greek words that together mean "yellow wood" (referring to the brightly colored sapwood possessed by several of the species). The genus belongs in the rue or citrus family, and, despite its name, is not closely related to either black pepper or chili pepper. Sichuan pepper has a unique aroma and flavor that is not hot or pungent like black, white or chili peppers. Instead, it has slight lemony overtones and creates a tingly numbness in the mouth (caused by its 3% of hydroxy alpha sanshool) that sets the stage for hot spices. According to Harold McGee in On Food and Cooking, second edition, p429 they are not simply pungent; "they produce a strange, tingling, buzzing, numbing sensation that is something like the effect of carbonated drinks or of a mild electrical current (touching the terminals of a nine-volt battery to the tongue). Sanshools appear to act on several different kinds of nerve endings at once, induce sensitivity to touch and cold in nerves that are ordinarily no sensitive, and so perhaps cause a kind of general neurological confusion." The dried pepper berries give off an aromatic scent. It is described as being lemon-like in most varieties, with a more or less strong warm-woody overtone. The variety found in the Asian area is spoken of in most cases under the name Szechwan pepper or Sichuan Pepper. In Asia, the main area of distribution of this sort lies in the Himalayas. Sprinkle freshly ground over light dishes.

Szechuan Peppercorns are a native Chinese spice with a unique citrusy and slightly wood-infused pepper flavor and a strong heat that has a mild numbing effect on the tongue.