Zanthoxylum simulans

Szechuanpeper is een specerij die gebruikt wordt in de Chinese keuken en in de keukens van Tibet, Bhutan, Nepal, Japan en de Konkani, een volk in India. Het is genoemd naar de Chinese provincie Sichuan, die bekend staat om haar pittige keuken. De specerij is geen echte peper. Men gebruikt de gedroogde doosvruchten van een aantal verschillende soorten, zoals Zanthoxylum piperitum, Z. simulans, Z. sancho en Z. schinifolium. Deze soorten behoren tot de wijnruitfamilie (Rutaceae), waartoe ook de citrussen behoren¹.

It is in flower in June, and the seeds ripen in October. The species is dioecious (individual flowers are either male or female, but only one sex is to be found on any one plant so both male and female plants must be grown if seed is required). . The plant is not self-fertile. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and prefers well-drained soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It can grow in full shade (deep woodland) semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers moist soil².

Szechuanpeper heeft een lichte citroensmaak en is niet zozeer pittig, maar creëert bij aanraking met de tong tijdelijk een tintelend, verdovend, effect. Szechuanpeper wordt vooral gebruikt bij visgerechten, maar ook bij kip, konijn of kalfsvlees en wordt ook toegepast in zoete gerechten. Een sambal van deze "peper" wordt vaak geserveerd bij babi pangang¹.

Oogst de bessen en verwijder de zwarte zaden; je gebruikt alleen de schilletjes. Die hebben een smaak die zowel peperig als fruitig is met aroma's van citrus. De schilletjes zijn erg lang houdbaar in een pot beschermd tegen licht. Voor gebruik wrijf je ze fijn in een vijzel. Het jonge blad is ook eetbaar en heeft, hoe verrassend, een peperige smaak³.

The fruit is dried and used as a condiment. A pepper flavour, it is stronger and more pungent than black pepper. It can be used whole or ground into a powder and used as a table seasoning. A light roasting brings out more of the flavour. It is an ingredient of the famous Chinese 'five spice' mixture².

Whole, green, freshly picked Sichuan pepper may be used in cooking, but dried Sichuan pepper is more commonly used. Once dried, the shiny black seeds inside the husk are discarded, along with any stems; the husk is what we know as Sichuan pepper or peppercorn. The peppercorn may be used whole or finely ground, as it is in five-spice powder. Sichuan pepper is also available as an oil. Sichuan pepper infused oil can be used in dressing, dipping sauces, or any dish in which the flavor of the peppercorn is desired without the texture of the peppercorns themselves. The leaves of the sichuan pepper tree are also used in soups and fried foods⁴.

• Anodyne
• Anthelmintic
• Antidote
• Antiphlogistic
• Astringent
• Carminative
• Diaphoretic
• Digestive
• Diuretic
• Emmenagogue
• Stimulant
• Stomachic
• Tonic
• Vasodilator

The pericarp is anaesthetic, diuretic, parasiticide and vasodilator. It is used in the treatment of gastralgia and dyspepsia due to cold with vomiting, diarrhoea, abdominal pain, ascariasis and dermal diseases. It has a local anaesthetic action and is parasiticide against the pork tapeworm. The pericarp contains geraniol. In small doses this has a mild diuretic action, though large doses will inhibit the excretion of urine. There is a persistent increase in peristalsis at low concentration, but inhibition at high concentration. The leaves are carminative, stimulant and sudorific. The fruit is carminative, diuretic, stimulant, stomachic and tonic. The seed is antiphlogistic and diuretic. A decoction of the root is digestive and also used in the treatment of snakebites. The resin contained in the bark, and especially in that of the roots, is powerfully stimulant and tonic².

Seed - best sown in a greenhouse as soon as it is ripe in the autumn. Stored seed may requires up to 3 months cold stratification, though scarification may also help. Sow stored seed in a cold frame as early in the year as possible. Germination should take place in late spring, though it might take another 12 months. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in a cold frame for their first winter. Plant them out in early summer. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, July/August in a frame. Root cuttings, 3cm long, planted horizontally in pots in a greenhouse. Good percentage. Suckers, removed in late winter and planted into their permanent positions².