Looking for Sichuan Ingredients? A Nashville Company Delivers

Sichuan peppercorns, the dried seed pods of the prickly ash, are actually not a kind of pepper, but a spice that delivers tongue-tingling heat with a citrus accent. They have become quite widely available. The ones sold by the Mala Market, a new company based in Nashville, are high-quality. Taylor Holliday, the owner, imports the spices directly from the source, so they are fresher than most. She also sells fragrant green Sichuan peppercorns, which deliver a shade less heat but more all-around flavor. A dozen more essentials for Sichuan cooking — like preserved vegetables, chile pods, chile oil, soy sauce, fermented black beans, Chinese vinegar and handmade chile bean paste — are also sold. The website posts recipes, including a terrific one for dry-fried green beans.

The Mala Market, themalamarket.com.

Follow NYT Food on Twitter and NYT Cooking on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest. Get regular updates from NYT Cooking, with recipe suggestions, cooking tips and shopping advice.

Florence Fabricant is a food and wine writer. She writes the weekly Front Burner and Off the Menu columns, as well as the Pairings column, which appears alongside the monthly wine reviews. She has also written 12 cookbooks.

Source: Read Full Article