Long peppers
Catkins of tiny peppercorns, hotter than black pepper and sweeter, with a pine-and-nutmeg perfume. Used in Indian pickles, Indonesian cooking and the larb spices of northern Thailand.
hot · sweet · resinous · pine-like
Kinds
- Indian (pippali)
- Smaller and greyer.
- Javanese (cabe jawa)
- Longer and redder; slightly milder.
Knowing it
- Where to buy
- Spice specialists online, and some Indian and Indonesian grocers.
- A little history
- Prized in ancient Rome, and the source of the word pepper — from the Sanskrit pippali. Chillies pushed it out of most kitchens.
- Worth knowing
- Too hard for a peppermill: toast it lightly, then break it in a mortar or a spice grinder, or grate it on a microplane.