T.a.t.u.al about us9/21/2023 Photo credit: Īn amusing story about black pepper plays out in Bermuda, where each year, the 200 year old Annual Peppercorn Ceremony occurs. As a result, many world cuisines developed special spice/herb blends that included black pepper.Īnnual Peppercorn Ceremony in Bermuda. As it became more available, prices dropped, and more people were able to use black pepper. At one time, pepper accounted for 70% of the world spice trade. With the explorations of Vasco Da Gama and others in the 15 th century, trade in black pepper fell to the Portuguese, then to the Dutch, and then to the British East India Company. Again, it was also used as currency: a pound of black pepper could free a serf, and many a young maiden was married with a black pepper dowry. The black pepper trade was responsible, in part, for the wealth of these two cities that sold the commodity to the rest of Europe.ĭue to the high cost of trading between Europe and India, black pepper and other spices became a luxury and a symbol of wealth, as the taste for flavored foods and a belief in the medicinal qualities of spices grew. Their trade created a new empire – the city states of Venice and Genoa. They created fantastic, frightening stories about where pepper grew in order to scare other traders away from the source of black pepper. When Alaric the Visigoth laid siege to Rome around 400 CE, he demanded a ransom of three thousand pounds of black pepper, along with gold and silver.Īfter the fall of Rome, the Persians and then the Arabs were in control of the spice trade. He remarked, “Whereas pepper has nothing in it that can plead as a recommendation to either fruit or berry, its only desirable quality being a certain pungency and yet it is for this that we import it all the way from India!” Romans used black pepper as a treatment for digestive problems and gas relief. Pliny the Elder (25-79 CE) could not understand the reason for pepper’s popularity. The first century Roman cookbook, Cooking and Dining in Imperial Rome by Apicius, featured recipes in which 80% of them called for black pepper. With exploration came the spread of black pepper to the Roman Empire, where it was considered so valuable that large quantities were stored in the Roman treasury. Cleopatra is said to have had skin lotions made with black pepper. Egyptians were early users of toothpaste, which they made from rock salt, dried iris flowers, black pepper, and mint. Containers of peppercorns have been found in Egyptian tombs, and they were even found in the nostrils of Ramses II who was mummified in 1213 BCE. Exportation brought it to Egypt, where it was used as a spice and as a medicine. Pink peppercorns are not a pepper at all, since they come from the Peruvian pepper tree, Schinus molle, which is in the cashew family.Īrchaeological evidence shows that black pepper was used as a seasoning in India as early as 2000 BCE. Green pepper is the dried unripe fruit that is brined to preserve its flavor and color. White pepper is the seed of the dried, fully ripe fruit. When we say “peppy,” we are referring to the taste of black pepper that can “pep” us up.īlack, white, and green peppercorns come from the same plant. “Pepper” comes from the Sanskrit word pippali, which means energy and spiritedness. The black pepper vine grows in my Zone 8b garden however, it has yet to produce any peppercorns, although it bloomed for the first time this year. It is grown for its fruit, which is dried and then used as a seasoning. Photo credit: Missouri Botantical Gardenīlack pepper is a perennial vine with heart shaped leaves and pendulous flowers.
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