The spice green pepper grows on a tropical, perennial climbing plant. The plant can grow to a height of 6 to 9 metres and grows best in a tropical climate. The green, still immature berries have a smooth outside and have a diameter of only 2.5 to 3 mm. They are picked by hand in order to maintain the best quality. Verstegen’s green pepper comes exclusively from Madagascar, because here is the best climate for growing green pepper.
Green pepper is a berry that grows on a tropical, perennial climbing plant. The plant can grow to a height of 6 to 9 metres and grows best in a warm, humid and tropical climate. India, Malaysia, Madagascar and Brazil have a good climate and these are the countries where green pepper is mainly produced. Verstegen gets its green pepper from Madagascar. If the berries are still immature and have a green colour, they are picked by hand. They are still smooth on the outside and are 2.5 to 3 mm in size. When the green pepper berries are further ripened and mature, they are further processed into black or white pepper.
Green pepper has a characteristic green colour and a herbaceous, spicy fragrance that characterises the spice. The typical and most famous green pepper flavour can be obtained by brining the green peppers and then bottling or canning them. The flavour is then very different from freeze-dried peppercorns or air-dried peppercorns.
The flavour of pickled green peppercorns is stronger. The brine used is a combination of water, vinegar, salt and citric acid. The colour of freeze-dried and/or air-dried peppercorns can vary from slightly fresh green to green/grey.
Green pepper is ideal for seasoning sauces, poultry, meat and fish. The spice is also used for fillings for pies and pâté. The peppercorns are usually added as a whole and often serve as decoration of a dish. The flavour also goes well with mayonnaise, aioli or paella. In these dishes, the peppercorn is first crushed to obtain the most flavour.
A well-known dish with green pepper is steak with pepper sauce. The pepper sauce contains whole peppercorns. This is one of the most popular dishes in the hospitality industry.
