Let’s Talk Food: Salute pepper, the most popular spice in the world

Last week I gave you the lowdown on salt and it behooves me to introduce you to salt’s best friend, pepper.

Probably no food commodity in history has had such an impact on human diet than pepper. This inconspicuous spice has changed world history, inspired exploration, caused wars and eventually led to the discovery of our own country.

So take a moment and salute pepper, the most popular spice in the world and one with a fascinating history. The pepper plant is a vine that thrives in warm, wet climates. The leading producers of pepper are Indonesia, India, Malaysia and Brazil. Food historians believe that the shrub from which the spice comes is native to the Travancore and Malabar regions of tropical India.

While visiting Kerala, a state in southern India, I was fascinated by fields of pepper plants, which are fairly short and are harvested twice a year. In the spice markets, one can buy a variety of peppercorns, which have been dried in the sun. Black pepper is prepared by grinding the entire peppercorn; while the white, which is much favored for cooking fish and for imparting a much more subtle flavor, is prepared by separating the skin and fleshy exterior from the hard inner portion.

Pepper is the oldest spice known to mankind and the demand for this ancient staple led to the opening of new trade routes through which began profitable trade routes that enriched their cuisine and expanded their fortunes.

From ancient Roman times through the Middle Ages, pepper was in such demand that it became a form of currency. During this period in history a pound of pepper cost about $700 and was often used to barter for cows. Some legends maintain that one could bargain for a strong and virtuous wife for a pound of the spice.

The exorbitant price of pepper in Europe during the 1400s led to the great era of exploration by the Spanish and Portuguese. It was on the Malabar coast of India that Vasco de Gama, the Portuguese navigator, discovered that pepper grew abundantly here. This led to one of the main reasons that Portugal sought a sea route to India and was one of the objectives of Columbus when he sailed westward to discover what he believed was part of the East Indies.

All pepper comes from the peppercorn but there are a number of varieties:

► Black pepper: Whole red peppercorns sold dried and are very strong and pungent.

► Green pepper: Unripe peppercorns sold dried or pickled in vinegar or brine. This pepper is less pungent and fruitier. This is the pepper used in steak au poivre.

► White pepper: Ripe peppercorns with the outer husk removed by rubbing in salt water. Much less spicy a variety and particularly suitable for seasoning white sauces and more milder fish dishes.

► Gray pepper: This is a mixture of white and black pepper and not commonly found in most markets.

Most recipes now call for freshly ground pepper. Although whole peppercorns retain their flavor and pungency indefinitely, grinding releases the aroma and flavor. Boxed ground pepper has a very limited shelf life and once you grind your own peppercorns you will realize how much more flavor is released from the peppercorns when ground in a mill.

Doris Reynolds is the author of “When Peacocks Were Roasted and Mullet Was Fried.” They are available for sale in the lobby of the Naples Daily News. Also available is a four-part DVD, “A Walk Down Memory Lane with Doris Reynolds. Contact Doris Reynolds at foodlvr25@aol.com.