Litsea (mountain pepper)

Litsea cubeba, L. pungens

spice

Small berries with an intense lemongrass and pepper taste, flavoring chicken and soups among Taiwan's Atayal.

Origin

Taiwan and southern China

Season (United States)

July to September

Preparation

The berries are pounded fresh or dried, a few per dish, or cooked whole in the soup. Its scent is volatile: at the end of cooking, not the start.

Molecules

Citral

Did you know?

The Taiwanese call it “mountain pepper”; its oil, very rich in citral, scents soaps.