Harvesting of Pepper
Black pepper takes about 7-8 months after flowering to reach full maturity. In India the crop is harvested during December –January. It is important to harvest pepper at the proper stage of maturity in order to achieve a dried product of good colour and appearance. Harvest starts when one or two berries turn yellow. The spikes are nipped of by hand and collected in bags. Spikes which are fallen on to the ground may be collected separately, cleaned and then pooled.
Post harvest processing:
Post harvest processing
operations followed for black pepper involves threshing, blanching, drying,
cleaning, grading and packaging.
1.Threshing:
Threshers with capacities varying from 50 kg/h to 2500 kg/h are available which
can thresh quickly and provide clean product.
2.Blanching:
The quality of the black pepper can be improved by a simple treatment of
dipping the mature berries taken in perforated vessel in boiling water for a
minute before drying (Removes the extraneous impurities like dust from the
berries). Drying Pepper has moisture content of 65% to 70% at harvest, which
should be brought to safer levels of 10% by adequate drying. The green colour
of matured pepper is due to the presence of chlorophyll pigment. During drying,
enzymatic browning sets in and the phenolic compounds are oxidized by
atmospheric oxygen under the catalytic influence of the enzyme phenolase
and eventually turn black. Sun drying is the conventional method followed for
drying of black pepper. The despiked berries are spread on concrete floor and
dried under sun for 3-5 days to bring the moisture content below 10%.
3.Cleaning and Grading: Cleaning and grading are basic operations that enhance the value of the produce and help to get higher returns. Cleaning on a small scale is done by winnowing and hand picking which removes most of the impurities. Grading of black pepper is done by using sieves and shifting black pepper into different grades based on size.
Varieties
of Pepper
Black
pepper is produced from the still-green,
unripe drupe of the pepper plant. The
drupes are cooked briefly in hot water, both to clean them and to prepare them
for drying. The heat ruptures cell walls in the pepper,
speeding the work of browning enzymes during drying.
White pepper consists solely of the seed of
the ripe fruit of the pepper plant, with the thin darker-coloured skin (flesh)
of the fruit removed. This is usually accomplished by a process known as retting, where fully ripe red pepper
berries are soaked in water for about a week so the flesh of the peppercorn
softens and decomposes , rubbing them removes what
remains of the fruit, and the naked seed is dried.
Green pepper, like black pepper, is
made from unripe drupes. Dried green peppercorns are treated in a way that
retains the green colour, such as with sulfur dioxide, canning, or freezedrying. Pickled peppercorns, also
green, are unripe drupes preserved in brine or vinegar.
Red peppercorns usually
consist of ripe peppercorn drupes preserved in brine and vinegar.
Phytochemicals: The aroma of pepper is because of the presence of an essential volatile oil (present in the cells of the pericarp). The pungency is caused by the non volatile oleoresin fraction and various alkaloids. Piperine is the main alkaloid (4 to 8 per cent) present in the fruit. Other alkaloids present in low amounts include chavicine, piperidine and piperettine.
Minerals: High concentration of minerals such as calcium,
magnesium, potassium, phosphorus ,and the lower concentration of sodium, iron
and zinc.
Vitamins: Vitamin C, B1, B2 and B3
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