In Central Europe, the native water pepper has occasionally be used to substitute pepper in times of economic shortage, but it is not grown and produced any longer. Another pungent spice, chiles from Central and South America, was first introduced as a pepper substitute in European cuisine, but has now gained much popularity all over the world, because of ist stronger pungency and easy growing. See also sichuan pepper for a comparision between several hot and pungent spice. Pepper plantation w3y.pharm.hiroshima-u.ac.jp Black pepper are the fruits of pepper harvested unripe and dried at moderate temperature. Under these circumstances, the former green pepper fruits turn black due to an enzymatic reaction, similar to tea leaves.
Green pepper is less pungent and very aromatic.
The ripe red fruits of pepper cannot be dried like black pepper, because, due to their sugar content, they would rot quickly. Therefore, white pepper consists not of the whole fruit, but of the seed grain only, which is cream-white in colour, very pungent but less aromatic. This red quality is rarely traded. Alone or in combination with other spices, pepper is much loved all over the world for spicy meat stews, steaks, sauces and all kind of vegetable dishes. Pepper may be cooked for quite a long time without losing its flavour.