Szechuan Peppercorn Syrup in cocktails

[JMF]

I made a Szechuan Peppercorn simple syrup last night and used it in an Old Fashioned, Whiskey Sour, Caipirinha, and a few other cocktails. Great stuff! I made a strong tea with fresh ground SP (which perfumed my whole house), then made a simple syrup from the filtered tea. Just love that spicy, tingly, feeling and that floral and citrusy taste the SP have. I got the SP from Penzey's in Grand Central Station in NYC a few days aho. I think this is one of the best batches of SP I have had.

[StriperGuy]

Man! Have some Appleton rum muddled with Szechuan peppercorn's... amazing. Yum. On the regular rotation.

[scoopG]

Yes thanks JMF for posting this! Does it matter what kind of tea? Did you use tea so as to add an extra layer of flavor to the syrup? Curious what plain old water would do.

[davis_sq_pro]

I think he meant that the ground peppercorns were steeped in water to make a "tea." But I could be mistaken.

[JMF]

Yep, you are right. A ground SP "tea" made extra strong. Simmered for a few minutes, let steep covered until cool. Filtered it, then added sugar.

[yarm]

While I've had SP simple syrups, it's also possible to muddle them and let the alcohol extract the flavor during the shaking and stirring process (fine straining at end required). Either way, the flavor pairs well with Batavia Arrack and other fiery spirits.

http://cocktailvirgin.blogspot.com/

[StriperGuy]

Interesting... very interesting...

[Frolic]

Attended a seminar by some NYC consultants (can't remember names) who did a daiquiri with a Chinese 5 spice simple syrup. Excellent and really easy to replicate at home.

Edit: Here is a brief blurb about the event with a link to video of the presentation.

[StriperGuy]

I use a lot of those (star anise, cinnamon, clove, etc. etc) spices in my bitters, preserved cherries, etc. But Sichuan peppercorns did not occur to me...

[cacio e pepe]

Great concept. Thanks for passing it along.