Burlap & Barrel announces its latest spice collaboration, a blend with roots in the American South, in collaboration with chef Ashleigh Shanti. The leading purveyor of single origin spices sourced directly from smallholder farmers around the world is expanding its journey to showcase the culinary talents of today’s top chefs, while creating memorable and intentional flavors that home cooks and enthusiasts can experience with their everyday dishes.
“This is a tried and true spice blend of the oldest kind. Long before any other spice blends existed, there was Kitchen Pepper. My version gives bright acidity and savory warmth with common baking spaces and cured sumac. I implore you to swap out the lemon pepper for Kitchen Pepper at your summer cookout,” shares Ashanti.
Versions of the recipe for kitchen pepper date back to the 18th century. Its flavors transport us to the Caribbean, with intense peppery notes, and Appalachia, with punches of bright acidity from sumac. This all-purpose blend warms up any dish, whether sweet or savory.
Ethan Frisch, co-founder and co-CEO of Burlap & Barrel, muses, “We’re so proud to be working with Chef Ashleigh Shanti to share a taste of her family’s traditional recipe for Kitchen Pepper, the original American spice blend. This is a rare opportunity to taste a historic spice blend that’s been almost completely forgotten, and to connect with a Black culinary tradition as interpreted by an award-winning chef drawing on her own family history — even the pattern on the label is inspired by her family’s quilting traditions.”
Kitchen Pepper jars retail for $11.99 and are available for national shipping via Burlap & Barrel’s website and at select specialty food retailers.
By V Sheree Williams
Cuisine Noir Magazine is the country’s first Black food publication, launched in 2009 and dedicated to connecting the African diaspora through food, drink and travel. To read the rest of this article and more, visit www.cuisinenoirmag.com.
