Перець кубеба

Botany

Cubeb is a woody climbing perennial, 5-15 m high. It is mostly grown in Java and Sumatra, hence sometimes called Java pepper. Commercial cubeb consists of the dried berries, similar in appearance to black pepper, but with stalks attached; these stalks give tailed pepper its name. The dried pericarp is wrinkled, and its color ranges from grayish brown to black. The seed is hard, white and oily.

Chemistry

In one analysis, methyl eugenol (41.31%), eugenol (33.95%), beta-cubebene (18.3%) and alpha-cubebene (4.1%) dominated the essential oil, while cubebol (26.1%) and beta-cubebene (12.3%) were the major compounds of the oleoresin. In a methyleugenol/eugenol chemotype of the fruit oil, phenylpropanoids were the main characterized class (75.41%). Other surveys describe the sesquiterpene hydrocarbons as the main class of constituents, with the monoterpene sabinene present in high amounts, up to 29.6%. Cubebene has the formula C₁₅H₂₄ and comes in two forms, α- and β-. They differ only in the position of the alkene moiety. Cubebene is a pale green viscous liquid. Cubebin (C₂₀H₂₀O₆) is a crystalline organic compound isolated from cubeb oilcake.

Taste and kitchen use

The taste of the berries is described as pungent, acrid, slightly bitter and persistent. In Moroccan cuisine, cubeb is popular in savory dishes and pastries such as markouts and the Ras el hanout spice blend.

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Related: Bengal Pepper · Black Pepper Oil · Ghost Pepper · Guinea Pepper · Japanese Pepper · Pepper · Peppertree · Pepperwood