Long pepper
long PEP-ur
Piper longum
Hot, sweet, warm, complex pepper.
What it is
Long pepper is the fruiting spike of Piper longum, a close cousin of black pepper, dried into small grayish catkins rather than loose berries. It is hotter than black pepper but with a sweeter, warmer, more complex flavor and a slow-building heat. It was the dominant pepper in the ancient and medieval European spice trade, more important than black pepper for a time, before falling out of fashion. It survives in Indian and North African cooking and is being rediscovered by chefs. It is ground from the whole spike and used like an especially aromatic pepper.
Similar but different
Easy to mix up, different enough that swapping changes the dish.
- Black pepperpungent, sharp, woody, warmly biting.
What it pairs with
Goes wrong with: dishes where plain pepper is wanted.
Common in Indian cooking.
Whole vs ground
Long pepper comes as small dried catkin-like spikes, not loose berries. The whole spike is ground; it is harder than peppercorns, so a sturdy grinder helps.
How to handle it
Grind and use like a sweeter, more complex black pepper in braises, spice blends, and pickles. It builds a slow, warming heat.
Storage
Airtight and dark. The whole spikes keep their aroma for over a year.
Buying note
Buy whole spikes and grind as needed. They are harder than peppercorns, so use a strong grinder or mortar.
Classic dishes
spice blends, pickles, braised meats, ras el hanout.
Out of long pepper? Substitutes
No substitute is exact. These are the closest by flavor behavior, with the ratio to start from and how the result will differ.
| Use instead | Ratio | How it differs |
|---|---|---|
| Black pepper with a pinch of warm spice | 1:1 | sharper and plainer, lacks long pepper's sweet warmth |
One odd thing
Long pepper was more prized than black pepper in ancient Rome, then faded from Western kitchens almost entirely.