Spiciest soup on the menu burns hole through Chinese man's stomach lining

Doctors in China were left dumbfounded when they discovered a hole in a man's stomach wall after he ate a notoriously spicy bowl of soup.

The 26-year-old unnamed male had consumed a mala soup, meaning 'numbing hot', a traditional Chinese dish.
...
The traditional Chinese dish is prepared using Sichuan pepper, a local spice, and chilli pepper/
The combination is known to cause a numbing sensation when consumed.

Most restaurants serving the dish offer it with varying degrees of spiciness.

According to local reports, many Chinese restaurants have begun to replace the natural, more expensive ingredients in hot pot dishes for cheaper, synthetic additives that replicate the spiciness.

Emphasis is mine.

It’s one of the key ingredients in Chinese “málà” cooking, and its effects are said to be both physiological and mental.

http://www.bbc.com/travel/story/2020111 ... or=ES-213-

Sow where does one purchase fresh Sichuan Peppercorns in the USA???

Spice House
Penzey
Epic

https://www.thespicehouse.com/
https://www.penzeys.com/
http://epicspices.com/

And I'm sure most any other fresh spice purveyor.

Edit: perhaps I am not understanding your question. Are you asking about 'not dried' peppercorns ? If so, I have no idea.

I would also recommend The Mala Market. My son got me a gift pack from them containing various chiles and both "red" and "green" sichuan peppercorns (they stock a third variety I haven't tried). The green ones are very bright in flavor, more citrusy; both are very buzzy in their "ma" aspect.

I would also recommend finding some sichuan peppercorn oil - when you don't want the texture of the peppercorns, or want to add some "ma" to a dish quickly, it's nice to have around. Mala Market has a couple brands.

JoelF wrote:I would also recommend finding some sichuan peppercorn oil - when you don't want the texture of the peppercorns, or want to add some "ma" to a dish quickly, it's nice to have around.

Szechuan pepper oil is handy, adds a nice zing without texture. A little goes a long way, use judiciously.

Be careful with the bottles, 16oz glass bottle of szechuan pepper oil slipped from my hand as I was taking it from the pantry. BOOM, what a mess, bottle/jar/pack nooks and crannies were doused with the stuff. Not to mention myself.

Fresh not dried!

JoelF wrote:I would also recommend The Mala Market.

I second that. As a side note, they are starting to get some of their long-delayed shipments in. As a local here, I am excited at the news they now have a warehouse building and they will be looking to open for retail sometime in the new year.

Rick T. wrote:

JoelF wrote:I would also recommend The Mala Market.

I second that. As a side note, they are starting to get some of their long-delayed shipments in. As a local here, I am excited at the news they now have a warehouse building and they will be looking to open for retail sometime in the new year.

There are plenty of reliable online sources. Last I checked, about a month ago, Mala Market was sold out of many items, including some packs of Sichuan peppercorns.

=R=

I saw a variety of Sichuan peppercorns at 88 Marketplace last weekend.

I viewed the Mala Market website and most of the items such as the Pixian bean paste were sold out and probably could be purchased mush cheaper in Chinatown.
The Pixian is to die for and I always purchase a number of the bags and distribute to family, it’s that good.
As to $40/bottle Chinese Soy Sauce, while I’m not a stranger to pricey items, this seems a little out of line.
I have seen a number of on-line sites getting into the Sichuan market and I suppose if you don’t have readily available ChinaTown, than it’s for you.
-Richard

ronnie_suburban wrote:

Rick T. wrote:

JoelF wrote:I would also recommend The Mala Market.

I second that. As a side note, they are starting to get some of their long-delayed shipments in. As a local here, I am excited at the news they now have a warehouse building and they will be looking to open for retail sometime in the new year.

There are plenty of reliable online sources. Last I checked, about a month ago, Mala Market was sold out of many items, including some packs of Sichuan peppercorns.

=R=

Both red and green back in stock:

https://themalamarket.com/collections/s ... -dry-goods