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K NOW- HOW
A QUESTION OF RIPENESS
Whether the peppers go on to become green, white, black or red depends
on when the bunches are picked and how they are processed. If they are
harvested before they are ripe and the fermentation process has been
stopped by means of the fruits being inserted in a salty or sour brine, the
green colour is retained. Another way of preventing the fruits from turn-
ing a dark colour through the oxidation of tanning agents is by drying
them very quickly at high temperatures. “Green peppers have a woody
and earthy touch and taste fresh and full of herbs,”, says Mr Holland.
Because unripe fruits have not developed much of a pungency, you can
use them in greater proportions than white or red peppers. Their high
share of essential oils means that green peppers are not only well suited
to adding flavour to sauces or Asian soups. Strawberries too can also be
crowned with a musky bouquet.
To produce black peppers, you leave the green fruits harvested to dry
and allow fermentation to take its course. This makes them dark, wrin-
kled and lined. “Its nutty and bread-like flavour makes black pepper a
talented all-rounder,” states Mr Holland, who was a starred chef before
he switched to become a spice miller. Black peppers can be used to
season vegetables such as spinach and beans just as well as dark meat.
“It goes especially well with game and beef, and makes it fresher and
saucier.” The professional recommends adding pepper to steaks before
frying instead of after, as this is the best way to release the full aroma.
White pepper requires a little more effort. It is based on mature red
fruits. The red shell decomposes through being soaked over several days
and is removed during the sieving process. The lighter-coloured seeds
remain, which then must be left to dry. White pepper therefore has
the same strength as the ripe pepper, though without the flavouring
substances of the shell. It is much more characterised by its “animalistic
flavour”, says Mr Holland, which among those with a keen sense of
smell may evoke images of cowsheds. If it is ground, however, it then
unleashes its full power and finesse. It goes best with light sauces and
white meat.
PRECIOUS AND EXPENSIVE
Genuine red peppers are by no means the bright-red little balls which
typically fall out of pepper mixtures or which you see liberally draped
around the edges of plates in restaurants. This dash of colour is provid-
ed by pink pepper berries, or more particularly the fruits of the Brazil-
ian pepper tree. They taste mild because the piperine chemical which
is responsible for the pepper’s sharp taste is not present. The genuine
red pepper is rather rusty red or orange red, and its intensive fruity
spiciness has a discreet sweet taste. Both precious and expensive, it
has a comparatively small yield. Relatively few farmers are prepared to
run the risk of the ripe fruits rotting during the drying process. If you
leave them to ferment beforehand, you get the deep-brown Tellicherry
pepper. Both peppers work well on both sweet and spicy dishes. A good
pairing, for example, is red peppers and ripe mangoes or papayas, while
the nutty Tellicherry chocolate cakes give it that extra oomph.
Mr Holland imports most of his pepper from India, the country with
the longest pepper tradition, but he buys his red peppers from Kampot
province in Cambodia. After the Khmer Rouge’s reign of terror came
to an end, the erstwhile pepper paradise started to bloom once again.
Its heavy, mineral-rich clay soil and the humid tropical climate create
the ideal conditions for unique high-quality pepper: strong and full of
character, which gently emphasises or consciously teases out the main
flavours and refines them in a striking way.
•
A TASTE FOR SPICY FOOD
The colour of a pepper depends on when the
bunches are picked and how they are processed.
“Black pepper
is a talented
all-rounder.“
Dish
by WMF
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