White peppercorn question

I was shelf gawking a few days ago in our largest oriental market, when I spied a small 3-4 oz jar of Vietnamese white peppercorns. They seemed ridiculously cheap at $1.69 so I bought one. The peppercorns seem to be several shades whiter than either of the ones sold by Penzey's but I have no idea of the quality, My white pepper grinder has the Penzey's in it and I will wait to see. My reason for posting this is to see if any of the experts here have any experience and or opinions of/about Vietnamese peppercorns.

Just try them Bob, and if it doesn't appeal, well, at that price you can let Saigons be Saigons.

(This is what happens when you're sitting in an airport with nothing to do.)

Just try them Bob, and if it doesn't appeal, well, at that price you can let Saigons be Saigons.

(This is what happens when you're sitting in an airport with nothing to do.)

Very funny

Gary, I had thought that I would smash some with the mortar and pestal and use them on the next pork loin I cook in my ceramic grill. I just was wondering what kind of quality is in the Vietnamese peppercorns.

Bob,

Maybe you ought to try it on something quicker & faster just for a test? Better than having it ruin an entire roast.

I'm not saying that it would ruin it, but just in case.

Richard

Good point Richard! And why is it that we never see you in Sunday chat anymore? Plus I was hoping that chef Joe might chime in since he is (1) of the experts, and he has Vietnam experience to boot. I bet he was not into white pepper when he was gathering that experience though.

Bob, this subject came up a few years ago when I was struck by recipes that called for white or black pepper. Robin, I think, educated me -- use white pepper for white dishes, black for darker dishes, on the grounds of aesthetics.

I find the black a bit more peppery -- Janet wants me to use only black pepper because she likes the taste.

The International Trade Forum has been following the Vietnam/pepper story for several years. Vietnam is now the largest pepper producer in the world; there were fears Vietnam would sell poor quality pepper, but that doesn't seem to be true.

Enjoy!

The International Trade Forum has been following the Vietnam/pepper story for several years. Vietnam is now the largest pepper producer in the world; there were fears Vietnam would sell poor quality pepper, but that doesn't seem to be true. Enjoy!

Bob, that last line is exactly the kind of info I was hoping to get from somebody. I should have expected it would have been you with the answer. Thanks.