(Great article highlighting other uses of pepper, this time black pepper, in hot & spicy fare. This article published with permission of Tina Brooks from her own blog.)

Every time we introduce a new customer to our Tellicherry Black sauce, we inevitably get asked the same question: “What’s a Tellicherry“.

Tellicherry is not a “what”, it’s a “where”. Located on the South-Western coast of the tip of India, near Cochin, Tellicherry is in the heart of pepper country.

Both Tellicherry pepper and Malabar pepper come from the same plant and are harvested at the same time. Tellicherry pepper are the larger of the two and will have matured further before the harvest, benefiting from a better location on the vine and thereby receiving more sunlight. Only the largest 10% of these peppercorns are good enough to bear the name Tellicherry, making these peppercorns very, very special, indeed.

In India, pepper is part of the cultural heritage of the people. Growing pepper is seen more as an art or a craft than as a metier. Even though it is a cash crop, pepper growing and grading is taken very seriously in this part of the world. Farmers take advantage of centuries of skill handed down from generation to generation to grow and harvest these tiny black seeds of flavour.

Once picked, it takes about a week for the peppercorns to dry in the sun. During this time, they will lose a share of their flavour in the process. Until recent years, all pepper drying was done this way. Although, nowadays it is not uncommon for pepper to be rapidly air-dried indoors. Interestingly enough, this new technology brings with it the benefit of less flavour loss. Thus, today’s peppers are fresher, cleaner and more full-bodied than ever before and allow the farmers to fetch a higher price.

Although the size of the peppercorn is very important to garnering the name, “Tellicherry”, the maturity of the peppercorn is the ultimately all-deciding factor. It is the extra-ripening time that the Tellicherry peppercorn receives that increases the percentage of essential oils in the fruit and makes it taste so aromatic and why the Peppermaster chose these peppercorns for our black pepper sauce.

Peppercorns although not chillies, are often a chiliheads first foray into the world of pepperfire. As children growing up in North America, what would setting the table be without a shaker of pepper? Well, it wouldn’t be rightly set, now would it? As we grow up and our tastes become more cosmopolitan, we are introduced to the splendours of the peppermill. Once having experienced the glory of fresh ground pepper, who would return to the dusty dryness of the pepper shaker? From the peppermill with ordinary Madagascar black peppercorns, (sold most commonly as “whole black pepper”), one eventually discovers the perfume and wonder that is Malabar and hopefully as well, Tellicherry.

I had opportunity to read of the adventures of one who visited India to research the true art of peppercorn manufacture, as I researched this article and he tells of his visit to Mount Tellicherry India.

Picture sweeping mountain slopes gazing down on a lush untouched jungle. Imagine the perfumes and odours of the world famous outdoor markets and all the spices wafting on the air. He describes a landscape very different and exotic, than ours, one ripe with cardamom and cinnamon, their perfumes carrying on the breezes and fields and fields of wild pepper bushes.

Pepper bushes grow to about 3-5 feet in height. They dangle their berries much like tiny bunches of grapes and although they have been known to grow well in other climates, the soil and climate of this region of India produces the best peppercorns in the world.

Interestingly enough, it is in the drying of the peppercorns that they get their distinctive colours ranging from green-yellow through red and brown to jet black. The long bunches of berries are picked almost ripe and allowed to dry to their familiar shape and colour as we know them. Even more interesting is that what we know as “white peppercorns” are not another species of pepper at all, but instead they are the de-husked center of the ripe peppercorn.

I learned in my research, too, that the varieties of peppers that we know as “pink, long and Szechuan” peppercorns are all different species of plant and indeed are not true peppercorns at all.

As the Peppermaster already knew and I learned, Tellicherry is synonymous with the absolute best grade of peppercorns. They are of better quality, the flavour is richer, and more varied and you’ll discover that this black pepper is well worth the time it takes for us to use it in our sauces.

Here at Peppermaster, we get our Tellicherry in airtight light proof pouches which we only open right before we will use the peppercorns. We grind them fresh and only process what we will use immediately. Although hand mills and mortars and pestles are recommended for the average kitchen, we use a high speed blender to crush the corns for our sauces. It is this last minute grinding that gives our Tellicherry Black sauce its distinct flavour.

If you haven’t had the opportunity to fill your peppermill with Tellicherry black peppercorns, we suggest you do. And in the meantime, pick up a jar of our Tellicherry Black sauce and introduce yourself to the rich intense flavour of Tellicherry pepper. We’ve married the Tellicherry to three of the richest flavours we know; fresh roasted garlic, rich dark Guatemalan espresso and to bring into full bloom the flavours of all of these ingredients, French Cognac that completes the bouquet.

Easy Salt & Pepper Shrimp
Ingredients:
1 Tbsp Butter or Cooking oil
1 Tbsp Tellicherry Black Sauce
1 lb peeled, veined Shrimp (with or without tails)

Directions:
Heat butter (until melted) or oil in saute pan. Mix in Tellicherry sauce. Saute shrimp until just cooked.

Serve with steamed vegetables and wild rice.

Easy Pepper Steak
Ingredients:
2-3 Tbsp Tellicherry Black Sauce
1/4 Cup heavy cream
2 New York strip loins (or your preferred cut)

Directions:
Combine cream and pepper sauce with a whisk. Bring to a simmer over low heat, keep warm.

Grill steaks to desired doneness and spoon on the pepper sauce or serve it on the side in a gravy
boat.

Serve with baked potato and grilled vegetables.

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