Black pepper is produced from the still green un-ripe drupes of the pepper plant. The drupes are cooked briefly in hot water, both to clean them & to prepare them for drying, the heat ruptures cell walls in the pepper, speeding the work of browning enzymes during drying. The drupes are dried in the sun or by machine for several days, during which the pepper around the seed shrinks & darkens into a thin, wrinkled black layer. Once dried, the spice is called black peppercorn. Black peppercorn is considered spicier than white peppercorn.

White pepper consists of the seed of the pepper plant alone, with the darker coloured skin removed. This is accomplished by a process known as retting, where fully ripe peppers are soaked in water for 1 week, during which the flesh softens & decomposes, rubbing them removes what remains of the fruit & the naked seed is dried.

Szechuan Pepper is the outer pod of a tiny fruit of a number of species grown widely in Asia & used as a spice. Despite the name, it is not related to black pepper or chilli pepper. This pepper has a unique aroma & flavour that is not hot or pungent, instead it has slight lemony overtones & creates a tingly numbness in the mouth that sets the stage for hot spices.

Image	Name	Description	Price	Qty
	Black Pepper Coarse 100g	Coarse ground black peppercorns	£1.49
	Black Pepper Ground 100g	Finely ground black peppercorns	£1.49
	Black Pepper Whole 100g	Whole dried black peppercorns	£1.49