Black Peppercorns, the King of the Spices, hold a wealth of flavors in their wrinkled black spheres. The peppercorn is sold whole, so you can decide on the grind and impact depending on your culinary intentions. Crack it open and you’ll get the aroma of spicy citrus, with an intoxicating floral top note. Bite the peppercorn and you’ll get a rush of resinous pine heat and deep, earthy flavor, with a grassy edge. The heat is thanks to piperine, a chemical compound found throughout the body and exterior of a peppercorn that brings pungency. The volatile oils, 1-2.5% of the peppercorn by weight, are the main drivers behind the aroma. Because the peppercorns are uncracked, they will retain their oils the longest of any choice of pepper, and will stay fresher on your shelf.

Black Peppercorns are a berry, the fruit of a climbing vine that emerged on the west coast of India. Their name, however, is straight out of an antiquated English term for a small item. “Corn”, at one time, referred to anything that was small and hard, and though it often pertained to a grain it was applied fairly liberally to small edibles. For example, chunky rock salt was, long ago, called corn salt, which is why we have corned beef and not rock beef. The use of the word “corn” in this manner fell away over time, though it can still be seen in peppercorn (of course), barleycorn, corned beef, and corn.

Tips From Our Kitchen

Whole Black Peppercorns give you the greatest latitude in how you decide to use them. Dry roast them in a pan before grinding to develop the most flavor. Grind Black Peppercorns into anything you’d use black pepper in. Crack them into a coarse grind and coat your steak. Make a stellar arugula salad with some Parmigiano Reggiano, lemon juice, and freshly ground Black Peppercorns. Grind into alfredo sauce for an extra kick. Black Peppercorns go wonderfully with tomato, so add to soup, or grind into a Bloody Mary. This is the most pungent form of pepper, though, so taste as you go and add mindfully.

Our black pepper is sourced from India, Indonesia, or Vietnam, depending on the time of year.

This product is certified kosher.

Hungry for more information?

Spice Cabinet 101: Peppercorns
Craft Brewers' Favorite Beer Spices
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Merriam Webster: Corn