POP QUIZ. Among the spices pictured above, which one is not actually a pepper?
If your answer is Sichuan pepper, I am tempted to say that is only because you are very familiar with white pepper and black pepper. But you would still be right. Sichuan (or Szechuan) pepper is, in fact, the dried husk of the prickly ash fruit. And since we are on the subject, did you know that white pepper and black pepper are the same berry, albeit harvested in different stages of development?
The more interesting thing about Sichuan pepper is that it has no heat (in scientific parlance, pungency). What it does have is a faint lemony aroma (prickly ash belongs to the same botanical family as rue/citrus), but more notably a compound with the unwieldy name of hydroxy alpha sanshool, which causes the tingle and buzz in your mouth before it goes numb. Now why would anyone want that?
Hmm, because I’m a masochist?
Kidding. It’s like your mouth’s dancing, y’know? When the numbness hits, that’s the caesura, the grand musical pause, a moment of silence in which you take in how silly the exercise is, yet how fun and exhilarating it is to not have to care — and you can not wait for the tune to pick up again, which it does, and you move harder for realizing all that.
(And because I used that analogy, I must confess that I do not dare dance in public. I have two left feet.)
On a more sober note (no pun intended), how sanshool works has yet to be fully understood. Or what it achieves beyond its superficial effects. Here it is believed to reduce the pungency of that other key ingredient in Sichuan cuisine, the chili pepper, “leaving diners free to appreciate the capsicum’s intense, fruity flavor.” I can go with that, but believe me, the first time I lost feeling in my mouth, I could not concentrate on anything else. I still can’t. It does not last very long, but I have yet to get over the strangeness of it all to keep my wits about me. I love it.
The Sichuan peppercorns I bought came with seeds (those black globules), which serve no purpose, except to drive up the weight (and price). To use, lightly toast husks before adding whole or crushed to your dish (or crush with some salt to serve as a table seasoning), or simply sautée in oil. Use as much as you dare; amount may vary depending on the quality of the spice. I think it works best in soupy dishes, but that will have to wait for when my folks are not around (long story). Tomorrow, noodles.
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