Sichuan Peppercorns? I'm not familiar with them...or cooking with..

I purchased mine on Amazon.

https://thewoksoflife.com/sichuan-peppercorns/

I've never heard that. The numbs your tongue so you can tolerate a hotter pepper doesn't sound particularly safe. Capsaicin is a poison in quantity. A lot of times, you add them whole and they transmit to the dish, and you don't actually eat them. You can substitute other peppers that are more to your desired Scoville range.

I purchased these years ago and then for awhile I heard that they were not available due to food safety issues. They have a perfumey quality. I can’t attest to whether the numb the tongue but I guess that’s where the descriptive hot and numbing that is seen on menus comes from. I was cooking from China Moon cookbook. Those recipes are not generally over the top hot.

I make Sichuan Peppercorn Oil and then use that oil in recipes, and I do not otherwise use the peppercorns. I've never had or used the powder, but I do have chocolate Habanero chili powder, which is something else altogether and is extremely potent.

I add Sichuan peppercorn oil to stir fries mostly, which may have chicken or shrimp as well as vegetables, and sometimes to soups, especially ones with cabbage.

Based on my love of all things SERIOUS EATS , I bought some sichuan peppercorns in 2019. I was underwhelmed. I detected no numbing effect and little spiciness. I used some of the peppercorns to make an oil. Ended up throwing most of it out. Very little flavor in my opinion.

I use them in several recipes that call for them. I have them whole and I crush them slightly, which is what the recipes call for. They provide a little heat. I'm quite sure I got mine from Penzeys.

I have a favorite recipe from Irene Kuo's The Key to Chinese Cooking that uses these peppercorns in a beef stirfry. I learned to toast them in a small pan, let them cool and then grind them with a mortar and pestle. They are very fragrant, but I don't find them numbing or even hot.

Sichuan Peppercorns...sounds like they add a lot of flavor? Most of you keep them or oil on hand. There's an Oriental market or two locally. I'll call ahead and see if they stock it. I'm still curious & want to try them. I'll use a small quantity. It should be safe.

I cook with these often. They are not spicy hot and they’re not really related to red peppercorn. Rather, they are the husk of a certain type of prickly ash.

Purchase good quality and you want to remove the stems and those little black seeds in the center of the pods; then you want to gently toast the husks. Let the husks cool.

The texture of the whole husk is unpleasant, and in my opinion it is better to grind them into a powder after they have been toasted and cooled and the stems, and that black seeds have been removed.

You can use a mortar and pestle, or you can put them into a regular pepper mill dedicated to just that particular material. It is best to toast and grind them as you need them — this will assure that you have the best, most fresh aroma.

I find that they do have a pleasant flavor as well as an overall sort of numbing tingling component. Fun, pleasant, ”addictive!”

If you are new to using them, be sure again to remove stems and the black seeds lightly toast and then pulverize if you were making a dinner (say) for two people I would not think it’s necessary to use more than a half or whole teaspoon of ground, powder, if you are new to this seasoning.

You can use them with Chinese food that isn’t necessarily hot or spicy, although they are more often used with dishes, such as Kung Pao, or Sichuan dishes.

It can be tedious, trying to pick out the stems and those little black seeds. The black seeds won’t hurt you, but they have a muddy gritty texture and spoil the toasted prickly ash husks. If you’ve got some eight and 10-year-old kids sometimes they like doing crazy stuff like picking out portions of things and they would be good possibilities for recruiting them to work. When I was about ten, I used to love untangling jewelry chains, doing lots of particular fussy stuff. It was sort of fun and rewarding.

Anybody ever have an eight year-old or a six or seven-year-old peel the skin from your sunburn? win-win .

Edited

HERE is an informative link:

https://redhousespice.com/sichuan-peppercorn/

Also:

https://www.allrecipes.com/article/what-to-know-about-szechuan-peppers/

PS Two things:

1. Avoid buying the already ground powdered sichuan peppercorn. Usually they are flavorless and you cannot be sure that the stems and black seeds were not included in the ground up stuff. It is best to prepare your own as needed, fresh.

I have read that some vendors sell the peppercorn/prickly ash husks free from stems and black seeds.

2. The sichuan peppercorns/ Chinese prickly ash gives a unique buzzy, numbing, tingly sensation. This ingredient does not numb your tongue or make you insensitive to the heat of chilli peppers — in fact, Sichuan and Hunan dishes are usually made with both the sichuan peppercorns (ground) AND hot peppers (commonly the widely available dried Chinese ”Facing Heaven” chilies. ( BTW, you can grow more chili pepper plants by just planting some of those dried seeds. I have done it. You can eat the hot chilies fresh or dried. However, most educated diners do not eat the dried red chili peppers. They are used for heat, flavoring and appearance.

^^^ I edited and added more.

If you want to experience the flavor of freshly toasted and ground Sichuan peppercorns, after preparing them as I mentioned earlier up thread, you can make a simple noodle dish – – something like this

To a couple of cups of properly cooked egg noodle (you can use spaghetti noodles, but don’t overcook them have them a little al dente), you can add some of the following

1 teaspoon of minced garlic, a little grating of ginger, a little bit of soy sauce, 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of the Sichuan peppercorn powder, a a little bit of toasted sesame seed oil about one or 3/4 of a teaspoon (should you keep this in your refrigerator so that it does not get rancid. I always refrigerate sesame seed oil. A teaspoon of oyster sauce. If you like, you can add a few red pepper flakes or dried Chinese chili peppers for flavor and heat. For less heat, remove the seeds.

OR, you can just add some red pepper flakes to only your portion, omitting them for DH’s serving.

If you want to add protein, such as a little bit of shrimp or chicken, you could add that, but cook it in a little bit of oil in pan first. I buy frozen shrimp, defrost them, pat the water off them and cook them in the shell in a hot pan in a bit of oil. Then shell them, and set them aside, removing the dark “vein.” (You can save the shell and use these later to make a little bit of broth rather than throwing away all the flavor in the shell.)

Have some freshly cut up green onion available (1/2” slices across).

You can just use a nonstick pan, wok, or any skillet with about a tablespoon or so neutral oil.

On medium heat, sauté the minced garlic and ginger. Don’t burn or brown the garlic because it will taste bitter. Add and cook the sichuan peppercorn powder.

Add the cooked shrimp (you can cut into sections) add the seasonings, Sichuan peppercorn powder, soy sauce, sesame, etc., and add the noodles and toss all together, heat through. Careful not to overcook the noodles — you want them to be nicely textured not mushy.

You can top or mix in the chopped scallions/green onion and you can add a bit of dry, roasted peanuts or some sesame seeds if you’d like. Make it pretty, even if just for a test or for yourself.

ed

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you can find them at most asian or chinese shops ... at least in my area. i grind them up and add them to stuff. tongue numing yes ... start with 3-5 peppercorns and adjust up or down.

Very helpful! I want to try them!