Spice Club Kit: Sichuan Pepper

May's Spice is Sichuan Pepper! Pickup begins May 1st, 2023 at 10:00 AM throughout the month of May, while supplies last.

Join us for our West Linn Public Library Spice Club. Cooking enthusiasts and novices alike may stop by the library and pick up a Spice Club Kit, which includes a spice sampling and recipes. Participants are asked to use the spice in their cooking at home, and can use the recipes provided to them, find a new recipe online, or replace a spice in a favorite recipe. We always appreciate when participants share their recipes.

Kits will be distributed on a first come first serve basis, and will be located next to the Information Desk on the first floor. 

"Sichuan pepper (hua jiao), know variously as flower pepper, brown peppercorns, prickly ash, or (erroneously) fagara. It is one of the most ancient Chinese spices, and a Sichuan specialty. It is an extraordinary, heady aroma that carries hints of wood, citrus peel, and the languid scents of summer, and it produces a weird numbing effect on the lips and tongue. The tingling sensation is known in Chinese as ma, which means "anesthetic" and "pins-and-needles. Despite the initial strangeness of this spice, its taste and fragrance are incomparable." "Land of Plenty" by Fuchsia Dunlop (pg 15 - 16)

Upcoming Spices:

August (2024): Marash Chile Flakes

November (2024): Hazelnut Dukkah

February (2025): Khmeli Suneli

May (2025): Bulgogi Spice