Pepper

Pepper is awesome. Full stop. It smells, it crunches, it makes you frown for a second, and it makes every dish better. Over thirty varieties are waiting for the mill: black, white, green, red, fermented, smoked, Szechuan. I sprinkle it over everything. Because pepper can do it all: spice, fragrance, life. Grind it fresh once, and you’re in.

Buy pepper: over 30 varieties from the manufactory

Pepper isn’t just pepper. What the supermarket sells as “mixed pepper” is usually a sad blend of overaged corns that lost their aroma long ago. With me you’ll find over 30 hand-picked varieties, each with its own character, its own origin, its own story.

The classics: Kampot, Tellicherry, Malabar

Let’s start with the big ones. Kampot pepper from Cambodia is legendary for a reason: intense, complex, with notes of eucalyptus and citrus. I stock it in black, white, red and even fermented, the last one is an insider tip for anyone who likes it spicy and earthy.

From India comes Tellicherry pepper, large corns that were allowed to ripen longer on the vine and therefore develop more aroma. Malabar pepper is its robust brother, perfect for hearty dishes. And Banasura highland pepper from the mountains of Kerala? An experience, fruity, mild, with a hint of citrus.

The exotics: Szechuan, Tasmanian, Voatsiperifery

Now it gets exciting. Szechuan pepper isn’t botanically a pepper at all, but what it does on your tongue is unique: a light tingle, almost electric, with citrus notes. I stock it in green and red. Indispensable for Asian cooking.

Tasmanian pepper from Australia brings a fruity heat that builds slowly. Perfect for game and dark meat. Wilder still is the wild forest pepper Voatsiperifery from Madagascar, harvested from wild-growing lianas, with a woody, forest-like aroma you won’t find anywhere else.

The surprises: whisky, verbena, Andaliman

Some peppers you just have to taste to understand. The whisky peppercorns are matured in real whisky barrels, smoky, malty, perfect with steak or in a pepper sauce. The verbena pepper brings lemon verbena aromas, ideal for fish and light sauces.

And then there’s Andaliman pepper from Sumatra, citrus-fresh with a slightly numbing effect, like a mild Szechuan. Or Cumeo pepper from Vietnam, which smells of grapefruit. These aren’t mainstream spices, this is pepper for people who want more.

The underrated: long pepper, cubeb, grains of paradise

Long pepper was more popular than black pepper in the Middle Ages, rightly so. Sweet and hot, with a depth normal pepper doesn’t have. The cubeb peppercorns taste of allspice and eucalyptus, perfect for gin lovers. And the grains of paradise from West Africa? Hot, peppery, with a hint of cardamom, underrated and magnificent.

Ready-made blends: for the mill

Not in the mood for experimenting? The Pepper Composition No.5 is my all-rounder, five varieties, perfectly balanced, for every day. The Pepper Composition No.3 is a touch simpler, but just as good. Into the mill and off you go.

Buying pepper the right way

Always buy pepper whole, never ground. Ground, it loses in weeks what it keeps whole for years. A good mill, freshly ground, and you taste the difference instantly. I check every batch personally before it goes into the jar. Whatever doesn’t convince me doesn’t get sold.

What's the difference between black, white, green and red pepper?

All four colours come from the same plant. The difference lies in the harvest timing and the processing. Green pepper is harvested unripe, mild, fruity, perfect for cream sauces. Black pepper is picked just before ripeness and fermented. Through fermentation, the piperine and the essential oils turn into that complex heat which makes good black pepper. Red Kampot pepper is the fully ripe fruit, rare and precious, with a sweet, fruity heat. White pepper is the peeled core, hot but less aromatic, ideal for light sauces.

Why should I buy whole peppercorns instead of ground pepper?

As soon as a corn is ground, the essential oils evaporate, within minutes. What the supermarket sells as “pepper” often only tastes dusty and sharp, nothing more. Freshly ground is a completely different experience: complex, aromatic, alive. Whole corns are a natural preserve inside their shell. Stored cool and dry, the corn keeps its full profile for years, while powder is already worthless after weeks. That’s why I sell pepper almost exclusively whole. A good mill, freshly ground over your dish, and you taste the difference instantly.

Which pepper goes best with meat, fish or vegetables?

Rule of thumb: Black pepper is the all-rounder, steak, dark sauces, hearty dishes. White pepper for anything where you don’t want black specks: light sauces, fish, mashed potato. Green pepper loves cream sauces and duck. And red Kampot pepper? That’s an experience with game, dark chocolate or strawberries. Yes, strawberries.

What is Kampot pepper and why is it so special?

Kampot pepper comes from a protected region in Cambodia, strictly controlled, traditionally grown, harvested by hand. Among us top chefs it’s regarded as one of the best peppers in the world. The aroma is intense, complex, with notes of eucalyptus and citrus. I carry it in black, white, red and even fermented. The champagne of peppers, you’ll never want any other pepper again.

Is red pepper the same as 'pink peppercorns'?

No, completely different spices. Real red pepper is the fully ripe fruit of the pepper plant, rare, precious, with real pepper heat and fruity sweetness. “Pink berries” or “pink pepper” come from the Brazilian pepper tree, are botanically not pepper and taste sweetish and resinous. Pink berries are often the visual “cheat” in cheap blends, because real red pepper would be far too expensive for the mass market. Once you’ve tasted the difference side by side, you instantly understand why red Kampot plays in a different league.