Szechwan Pepper

Szechwan pepper is native to the Szechwan province of China. Though they bear some resemblance to black peppercorns, they are not actually of the pepper family, but the dried berry of a tree of the rue family.

Szechwan peppercorns are rust coloured with hair-thin stems and open ends. The dried berries resemble tiny beechnuts measuring 4 - 5 mm in diameter. The rough skin splits open to reveal a brittle black seed, about 3 mm in diameter, however the spice mainly consists of the empty husks. It is available whole or ground. In Japan the leaves are used as spice - the ground dried leaves are known as sansho and the whole leaves, kinome, are fresh, vacuum-packed or pickled.

Bouquet: the berries are warm and pepperlike. The leaves have a citrus fragrance.
Flavour: the berries are mildly peppery, woodsy and acrid. The leaves are milder more citrus.