Tellicherry peppercorns

The most important exporters of black pepper are India (Malabar and Tellicherry pepper), Indonesia (Lampong pepper), and Brazil and Malaysia (Sarawak pepper).

Indian pepper has two main types, Tellicherry and Malabar, named after the centres from which they are traded. The name ‘Tellicherry’ is an Anglicisation of ‘Thallassery’, a commercial city north of Cochin.

Tellicherry peppercorns are larger than regular black peppercorns. Piper nigrum, the peppercorn plant, is grown in tropical climates around the world.

All peppercorns belong the Piper nigrum family, meaning that they are all the exact same thing. True black peppercorns are entirely different from spices that share the ‘peppercorn’ name, such as pink or Szechuan peppercorns. Tellicherry and Whole Black Pepper come from the same vine.

At the end of the growing season the pepper fruit is picked from the vine. The pepper is dried over a series of days and eventually shrivels and turns into what known as black peppercorns. Then the peppercorns are sorted by size. The smaller peppercorns are considered whole black pepper while the larger peppercorns become the Tellicherry.

Tellicherry peppercorns are considered as the most prized variety of black pepper due to its complex flavor profile, which includes woodsy and citrus notes. Tellicherry can be used in any dish that calls for black pepper.
Tellicherry peppercorns

History of one of the oldest spices: Black pepper

Black pepper is one of the oldest spices used by man. It has been traded since 1500 BC. When Alexander conquered Egypt in 332 BC, he created the major trading center for spices coming from the Orient and bound for Europe: Alexandria on the Mediterranean coast of Egypt - and it was here that western spice traders met with African and Asian spice merchants. 

Exotic spices such as cinnamon, cassia, black pepper, ginger and many others traded hands from Arabs to Greeks over the centuries at this Mediterranean port city - spices coming by caravan from India, China and Southeast Asia.

The earliest travelers from Europe who visited India described pepper cultivation on the Malabar coast. Theophrastus, the Greek philosopher (372-287 BC) mentions two kinds of pepper in the fourth century B.C., (most likely these were black pepper and long pepper), both of which were used by the Greeks and the Romans. It was one of the first commercial trade products between the East and Europe.

Pliny, in some early written reports, mentioned even about the price of pepper at that time. According to him, the price of long pepper was 15 Dinaries, white pepper 7 Dinaries, and black pepper 4 Dinaries per pound. During his time, Rome developed an active spice trade with Saudi Arabia and India.

During Pliny’s time Rome developed an active spice trade with South Arabia and Somaliland and, by direct route, with India. In the Roman Empire the consumption of spices as food condiments soared.

Discorides in the first century A.D. mentions black pepper and long pepper as well as white pepper, which is simply black pepper seed with its peel or pericarp removed. Black pepper and long pepper were among the spices from India on which the Romans levied import duty at Alexandria, around A.D. 176.

Pepper is mentioned by Roman writers in the fifth century A.D. It is said that Attila the Hun demanded, among other items, 3,000 lbs. of pepper as ransom for the city of Rome.

Centuries later, the high cost of pepper led the Portuguese to seek their own sea passage to India. The Portuguese were successful in this mission and monopolized the spice trade until the 18th century. Round or black pepper began to compete with long pepper in Europe beginning in the 12th century and had replaced it by the 14th century.

The British founded their East India Company in A. D, 1600. Two years later the United East India Company of the Dutch was formed. Their entry in this field increased rivalry in spice trade. Between A.D. 1605 and 1621, the Dutch managed to drive the Portuguese out of the Spices Island achieving a monopoly in spices trading.

In January 1793, an agreement was made between the Rajah of Travancore and the Crown of England. The Rajah was to supply large quantities of pepper to the Bombay Government in return for arms, ammunition and European goods. This is known historically as the “Pepper Contract”.

From the 16th to the 18th centuries, the struggle for control of the Far Eastern spice producing regions became so intense that wars were fought between Portugal, Holland, and England. By the end of the 18th century, the United States entered the world trade for spices, bartering its salmon, flour, and soap for tea, coffee and spices.
History of one of the oldest spices: Black pepper

Black pepper (Piper nigrum)

Black pepper (Piper nigrum), an Indian native spice, has been widely used in human diet for several thousands of years. Piper nigrumis used for the production of both black pepper (from the unripened fruit) and white pepper (from the dehulled mature berry).

It is valued for its characteristic sharp and stinging qualities attributed to the alkaloid piperine. While it is used primarily as a food adjunct, black pepper is also used as a food preservative and as an essential component in traditional medicines in India and China.

It belongs to the family Piperaceae, cultivated for its fruit (berries) that are usually dried and used as a spice and seasoning. Black pepper is considered the king of spices throughout the world due to its pungent principle piperine. Peppercorn of Piper nigrum as a whole or its active components are used in most of the food items.

Black pepper is a plant of humid tropics requiring high rainfall and humidity. The hot and humid climate of sub mountainous tracts of Western Ghats is ideal for its cultivation. It grows successfully between 20° North and South latitudes, and, up to 1500 m above sea level. The crop tolerates temperatures between 10o and 40°C.

Black pepper constituents include fiber, essential oils, piperine, eugenol, the enzyme lipase, and minerals. Essential oil components include!- and"-pinene, limonene, and"-caryophyllene. Piperine and its isomers are the major factors responsible for the pungency and irritant action of black pepper. Black pepper (Piper nigrum)

White pepper

White pepper is obtained by removing the outer skin, namely pericarp and outer portion of the mesocarp of the ripe or matured green berries or dried black pepper (Piper nigrum L.).

The genus Piper is the largest in the family Piperaceae and contains more than 3,000 species reported from tropical and subtropical regions around the world.

White pepper is used mostly as a direct spice. Black pepper is used in a wide variety of foods, particularly meat products, while white pepper is used in light-colored sauces, mayonnaise, and cream soups when dark particles are undesirable.

This spice has also been used as herbal medicines, preservatives, dietary supplements, and fragrances. It contains components rich in aromatic oils, oleoresins, and alkaloids.

The odor of white pepper displays an unpleasant aroma note, which is often described as cowshed-like or fecal-like. 3-Methylindole, q-cresol, a-pinene, linalool, b-damascenone, eugenol, skatole, m-cresol, guaiacol, and piperonal were identified by aroma extract dilution analysis on an extract of white pepper powder.
White pepper