Chinese food? Bring out the Black Pepper.

[Graybeard]

I love Chinese food but I'm not into hot sauce or curry. Chinese mustard is way too much for me. However in everything else that I cook and eat I like to add a little zing, usually black pepper.

In a palm to forehead moment I started using the pepper grinder on my Chinese dishes and it's great! Try pepper in the rich broth of your Won Ton soup. Eggs without pepper? Egg Foo Young really perks up when it is added. Try it in all of your favorites.

Mmmm.

[Little Star]

1. Have you ever tried white pepper on your chinese food?...

That's what the chinese places around here use and I bought some at the supermarket for my take-out. yummmmmm

[Graybeard]

2. That sounds fabulous.

White Pepper was always a staple in my Mom's pantry for use in things like mashed potatoes and cream sauces. I was delicious.

I'm putting it on the list for my next visit to the market.

Thanks.

[A Simple Game]

12. I add white pepper when I bake bread, and even add it when I bake a cake.

The theory is that the pepper makes you salivate and that helps you taste the food better.

I don't add enough the actually taste the pepper. I'm sure I got the idea from some baking show or book.

[Denninmi]

3. Try Szechuan Pepper some day.

It's a very interesting flavor and sensation.

The flavor is lemon-pepper.

The sensation is similar to orajel -- it has a compound in it that is a mild, topical pain-killer, numbing compound.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sichuan_pepper

I grow my own here, from the closely related American species Prickly Ash. It tastes exactly like the grocery store variety, just slightly smaller fruits.

Fun to play with in the kitchen:

Here's a good chicken recipe to get you started, if interested:

http://chinesefood.about.com/od/szechuanpoultryrecipes/r/bangbangchicken.htm

[Graybeard]

4. Some of you are way ahead of me!

Sounds really fab. Thanks for the links.

[AlecBGreen]

6. Huajiao is great!

My wife is from China and cooks with it a lot. She even brought back a whole jar of huajiao (hwa-jao) oil her mom had made for her. I love the stuff. The best is when she makes these crispy match-stick fried potatoes and they have lots of the sichuan pepper in them. *drool* sooooo gooooood...

[pinboy3niner]

5. If you love black pepper, try Malabar or Tellicherry

Great-tasting black pepper from India, available in supermarkets.

And a tip I learned long ago for "bringing up" the flavor when you buy peppercorns: Place them on a baking sheet or on foil in an oven that has been pre-heated to 200 degrees and turned OFF. Remove from oven after the peppercorns reach the point of fragrance (your kitchen will be filled with a nice, peppery aroma).

[CherokeeDem]

7. Umm...pepper...love pepper...

I love Tellicherry....all I will use...

[Major Nikon]

8. There are wide variances in curry

Instead of one spice, curry is a combination of several. If it's the capsicum peppers that turn you off, there are some variances that have none and you can blend your own, which is actually more authentic anyway. Some types of curry use peppercorn as a base instead of capsicum peppers.

[Arugula Latte]

9. Plus, black pepper is good for you, as well as being delicious.

http://www.healthdiaries.com/eatthis/8-health-benefits-of-black-pepper.html

[RebelOne]

10. I use black pepper on just about everything I eat.

But I do love Chinese mustard on Chinese dishes.

[pokerfan]

11. I use this stuff on everything