Szechuan Peppercorns

Any favorite ways of using these out there?

Kimmie,

That's pretty vague of you. Care to share?

Dlee,

Thank you for your response. Where do you all find them? Asian grocery stores? Do you purchase them as "Szechwan Peppercorns" where you buy them or are they commonly under other names...?

The reason I ask is because they're really the dried berry/seed of a deciduous prickly ash tree.

Other Names: anise pepper, brown peppercorns, chinese aromatic pepper, chinese pepper, fagara, fahjiu (Cantonese), flower pepper, hu chiao (Mandarin), sansho (Japanese), sichuan peppercorns, timur (Nepalese), xanthoxylum

Kimmie,

Sounds delicious.

Dlee,

Apparently, according to World Merchants

This product is currently under an import ban in the whole, unroasted form because of the citrus canker that infected the crop in Southeast Asia. We will not sell it whole as it must be ground and roasted at it's origin to satisfy US import regulations. Stay tuned for updates.

fondue [fahn-DOO]
From fondre , the French word for "melt," the term "fondue" has several meanings.

The first three definitions pertain to food cooked in a central pot at the table.

1. Fondue au fromage is a classic dish of Swiss heritage consisting of cheese (usually EMMENTALER and GRUYÈRE) melted and combined with white wine, KIRSCH and seasonings. Bite-size chunks of French bread are dipped into the hot, savory mixture.

2. Fondue bourguignonne is a variation whereby cubes of raw beef are cooked in a pot of hot oil, then dipped into various savory sauces.

3. Another version is chocolate fondue, a combination of melted chocolate, cream and sometimes LIQUEUR into which fruit or cake may be dipped.

4. In French cooking, the term "fondue" refers to finely chopped vegetables that have been reduced to a pulp by lengthy and slow cooking. This mixture is often used as a garnish, usually with meats or fish.

confit [kohn-FEE, kon-FEE]

This specialty of Gascony, France, is derived from an ancient method of preserving meat (usually goose, duck or pork) whereby it is salted and slowly cooked in its own fat. The cooked meat is then packed into a crock or pot and covered with its cooking fat, which acts as a seal and preservative. Confit can be refrigerated up to 6 months. Confit d'oie and confit de canard are preserved goose and preserved duck, respectively.

From the Epicurious.com Dictionary

Anneke,

Yes, I believe the term you are looking for is "confit". For clarification, there are others which might help clarify for future reference:

Confit
This term is a French word that is best translated as preserving. It has 2 meanings--one for the savory kitchen and one for the pastry kitchen. In the savory kitchen, it historically refers to a meat submerged in flavorful rendered fat and cooked slowly until very tender. Confit has recently been expanded to include interpretations such as slowly cooking meat, fish or vegetables in a flavorful oil such as olive oil (which may or may not be infused with secondary flavors). Confit has also been applied to anything that is cooked slowly, while not necessarily being completely submerged in fat , i.e. confit onions. This last savory interpretation is probably closely related to the pastry department's use of the confit. To the pastry chef, confit refers to candied fruit--fruit cooked slowly in sugar syrup until tender.

Ratatouille
A vegetable stew consisting of onions, eggplant, sweet peppers, zucchini, and tomatoes flavored with garlic, herbs, and olive oil. Traditionally simmered until all of the vegetables are quite soft and the flavor has blended into one, ratatouille takes on the appearance of marmalade. Newer versions reduce the cooking time, allowing the vegetables to retain some of their original identity.

Arlésienne
French for rings or slices of vegetables cooked in oil.

a la Grecqua
(French) Meaning in the Greek manner. Term describes vegetables cooked in a mixture of oil and vinegar, or lemon juice, with seasoning added. Serve cold or chilled.

Do you all grind the entire berry?

I'm of the understanding that if you have the Szechwan berry (aka peppercorn) you only use the outside shell to cook with and not the seed in the seed in the middle because it tends to be bitter.

What do you all do?