I’ve not managed to track it down on the internet … any pointers please?
Up to now I get mine from Épices Rœllinger, but also from an Asian del.
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Hi. We get the Raleigh’s from a local seller, but I’ll have a look and let you know what I find.
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I’ve tried most herbs and spices. Not many I wouldn’t consider as a favourite.
Love going through ethnic supermarkets and online suppliers for those more unusual ones.
Never tried ‘Grains of paradise’ a rare more fragrant and intense variant of black peppercorns.
Sounds right up my street.
Krachai fingerroot. Galangal. Caraway seeds. Juniper berries. Star anise. Lovage…
My only reservation is using cinnamon in a tomato sauce, following a middle eastern recipe. No way jose.
I’m struggling with the idea of ready ground peppercorns being better than whole peppercorns ground as you use them. Like many spices, the flavours come from volatile oils which will inevitable dissipate over time, and in the case of black pepper, I would say quite rapidly.
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I can see your point, but having it properly ground is the key, I believe, as opposed to grinding it with a relatively inexpensive handbeld grinder, with not much thought put into the coarseness or method.
I think maybe it’s like the coffee thing. It doesn’t matter when you grind coffee, because the beans will only retain their freshness for 5-7 days after they’ve been roasted. After that time, there’s really no difference. But undergrinding or overgrinding the beans makes a big difference.
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The latest advice regarding the use of ground pepper : its ok to season a sauce or something that’s braised before or during the process. Not ok for anything fried, grilled, roasted - anything that is in contact with unprotected direct heat. This should be seasoned at the end on serving. !!! 
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Hmmm … that makes a lot of sense. I guess the heat destroys the pepper oils, the same as it does with olive oil and the like. We use grapeseed oil for any hjgh heat cooking for that reason.
Thanks for the tip.
I’ve just had a look, and their website is:
wtrawleigh.com
Or wtrawleigh.com/black-pepper.html
Sorry, I was spelling it wrong in my posts. I left out the w.
Tbey explain why it’s so good. Of course they’re biased … but it really is excellent.
They’re in the States tho, so I don’t know if it’s practical for you.
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One of my favourite ways to use black pepper is taken from a very old Dum Gosht recipe in which the meat (traditionally beef or lamb) is cooked in a sealed casserole type pot for a long time. You put the peppercorns in whole, and the flavour is released into the sauce over a few hours of cooking. By the time you eat it, the peppercorns are soft enough that you can eat them, and when you bite on one the flavour just floods over your tongue.
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Thanks
It depends on the flavour you want! If you want, say, the surface of the meat to absorb the pepper taste, and the very outside to have seared pepped combined with seared meat, then rub it into the meat some time before cooking, but if you wang a freshly gound pepper taste add at the last moment…
Not mine. But, the theory goes that the unique flavour profile can be corrupted from certain cooking procedures.
Truthfully I haven’t compared a black peppered seasoned steak after a high sear against one with just a salt seasononed one.
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Oddly my pepper mill is low on peppercorns and I located a pot of old coarsely pre-ground black pepper to cook with on Sunday. They smelt fantastic despite me forgetting to put the lid back ages ago!
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Aframomum melegueta
Grains of Paradise.
Funnily enough I’ve had this in one of those sports supplements which claims thermogenic effects and increased fat burning. Added a not unpleasant spiciness to a fairly refreshing drink.
Can’t recall if turmeric has been mentioned but it has many anti-inflammatory/antioxidant compounds particularly the polyphenol curcumin - absorption of this is significantly increased in the presence of the alkaloid compound piperine from black pepper it seems.
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Yes fresh turmeric.
Unfortunately like other fresh stuff, can vary.
I’ve had some fresh turmeric thats been totally rubbish. No flavour. No colour. No nothing.
Whereas some that just needed a small nibs worth to completely overpower a dish.
Sometimes having the dried version is reliable.
Sometimes with a great fresh version, can be mind blowing when used rightly.
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I’ve bought some in Waitrose but like many things it’s a good intention, and it’s off by the time I get to use it!
Put it in the freezer.
I’ve got what was some fresh oregano in a ziplock mini bag. When I need it I just wriggle it and a whole load comes out. Same with my special collection of frozen very hot chillies.
As far as I can tell There is not a lot of reduced performance from any robust fresh spice and herb given the long freezer treatment.
I have kept fresh lemongrass and lime leaves for 2 years in the freezer.
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I’ve never tried turmeric fresh - I’ll have to look out for it.
I notice no one has said salt.
It’s not very sexy I know but we don’t get very far without it. It tends to be required to get the flavour out of the other spices mentioned. As does sugar for that matter, though sugar is not classed as a spice.
Had steamed vegetables for lunch with just the lightest drizzle of olive oil and finest sprinkle of salt. Sublime. Overlooked. Really allows you to get into the flavour of a carrot, a red rum spud, or fresh broccoli. Reduces the flavour noise floor and allows for superb separation 
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Yes, as you observe sugar is another ingredient that can enhance the flavour of some foods, and without necessarily imparting obvious sweetness. However neither salt nor sugar are spices (or at least not classified as such in UK or EU - maybe Japan classifies differently?) however much they add to the taste of some foods…
Interestingly with salt I’ve noticed that people in warmer countries seem to like their food saltier than those in colder countries - I wonder to what extent that is a physiological adaptation, to compensate for salt lost through sweat.