Old Agony Fish Pepper has been specially formulated from an old recipe with the addition of Tasmania’s unique wild mountain pepper.

Tasmanian pepper comes from a small, attractive, slow-growing shrub known as Tasmannia lanceolata. Its distinctive features are spear-shaped leaves, bright crimson stems and creamy-white flowers in spring which produce juicy green berries, ripening to black.

Both the berries and the dried leaves are used in cooking; the dried berries are up to five times hotter than ordinary pepper.

Old Agony Breakfast Pepper has been specially formulated from an old recipe with the addition of Tasmania’s unique wild mountain pepper.

In colonial days before refrigeration when meat, fish and other foods were preserved by salting or drying, strong spices were used to add flavour to what would otherwise have been bland and tasteless dishes.

Old Agony’s blend of carefully chosen peppers and spices will complement almost any savoury dish; use it sparingly at first — it is not styled Curiously Hot for nothing!

Maximising the flavoursome tastes of Tasmanian Mountain Fish Pepper

AT TABLE

Sprinkle Tasmanian Mountain Fish Pepper on fried, baked or steamed fish. A squeeze of lemon juice will bring out the heat and the full flavour of the pepper.

IN THE KITCHEN

Mountain Fish Marinade

Juice of a large lemon or 3 limes
50ml olive oil
1 teaspoon Tasmanian Mountain Fish Pepper (maximum!)
2- 3 cloves garlic, well crushed.
Salt to taste

Put all ingredients in a well-sealed jar and shake vigorously, cocktail-bar style, for at least a minute.

Pour over fish fillets or cutlets and leave for 15-20 minutes, turning them at least once before grilling or frying.

Leftover marinade can be stored in the refrigerator for future use. If ingredients separate during storage, a good shake will restore the original consistency.

Tasmanian Mountain Devilled Prawns
500g green prawns, peeled and veined
1 good teaspoon Tasmanian Mountain Fish Pepper
Half cup cornflour

50g chopped coriander, both leaves and roots

Place prawns on paper towel, cover them with more paper towel and pat them dry.

Mix pepper and cornflour together in a bowl, toss in the prawns and shake until they are well coated.

Combine the wine, fish sauce and honey in a bowl.

Soften the shallots and garlic in the oil in a wok or deep frying pan.

Then add the prawns, turn up the heat and stir-fry them until they begin to curl — this will take only a couple of minutes.

Pour in the honey, fish sauce and wine mixture and cook for a further minute.

Once the liquid has thickened somewhat, add the chopped coriander, allow 30 seconds more and then pour in the coconut cream. Serve with rice.

Getting the most out of Tasmanian Mountain Curiously Hot Pepper

AT TABLE

Sprinkle Tasmanian Mountain Curiously Hot Pepper on breakfast eggs, tomatoes and sausages to awaken your palate and stimulate the flow of digestive juices. It is particularly warming on cold mornings.

IN THE KITCHEN

Tasmanian Mountain Marinade

200 ml red wine — the rougher the better
50 ml olive oil
1 teaspoon Tasmanian Mountain Curiously Hot Pepper (maximum!)
2- 3 cloves garlic, well crushed
Large dash of Worcestershire sauce
Salt to taste

Put all ingredients in a well-sealed jar and shake vigorously, cocktail-bar style, for at least a minute.

Pour over steaks, chops, kebabs and leave for 20-30 minutes, turning them at least once.

When grilling or on the barbeque, use the marinade to baste. Leftover marinade can be stored in the refrigerator for future use.

If ingredients separate during storage, a good shake will restore the original consistency.

Tasmanian Mountain Gravy
50g butter
1 tablespoon plain flour
150 ml beef or chicken stock
200ml red wine — the rougher the better
1 teaspoon Tasmanian Mountain Curiously Hot Pepper (maximum!)
2 teaspoons sugar
Large dash of light soy sauce
Salt to taste

Heat stock, wine, soy, sugar and salt until just simmering.

Melt the butter very slowly in a heavy pan — do not let it foam or burn.

Take the pan off the heat and stir in the flour with a wooden spoon to make a smooth paste.

Slowly pour the heated liquid into the pan, stirring as you do so.

Return the pan to very gentle heat and slowly bring to the boil until the gravy thickens.

Tasmania’s wild mountain pepper can be up to five times hotter than ordinary black pepper – and it has quite a different taste sensation to chilli.

It’s rather like the Sichuan pepper used so widely used in north-east Asia to produce the famous tongue-numbing hot dishes of the region.

What makes Tasmanian pepper so prized by chefs for its lingering afterburn is a compound called polygodial (the experts say it’s a dialdehyde with a bicyclic sesquiterpenoid backbone, in case you really wanted to know).

It’s found in both the berries and the leaves of this attractive wild shrub which grows wild throughout Tasmania. The pepper bush is a Gondwanaland plant which evolved before that huge prehistoric continent broke up; that is why it has relatives in South America.