The taste of sichuan peppercorns remains on my tongue a week later...

October 8, 2015 5:45 PM

Tell me about the long terms affects of sichuan peppercorns on your tastebuds.

So, this may sound like a silly question, but it's not entirely silly.

On September 30 we had a going away lunch for someone at work, which we enjoyed at a local Sichuan restaurant. It was extremely tasty. And spicy, in the ways that Sichuan food often is...which is to say, not just "OMG that's hot!" spicy, but more like, "OMG, not only was that hot, but my lips and tongue are now numb, and numb in the most amazing way!!"

So in the interim I've duly read up on Sichuan peppercorns and their numbing qualities. From the second link: "Research shows that a molecule in the peppers activates your cells' touch receptors, making them feel like they've been rapidly vibrated." I won't paraphrase the whole Smithsonian article that quote came from, but I understand the science behind it, and about how the hydroxy alpha sanshool molecule is different from capsaicin, which is the hot spice we are more likely to find in Western cuisine. That isn't exactly my question.

My question is this: Why is this taste still on the tip of my tongue eight days later? Will it eventually fade, or have I broken my tastebuds, lol? I don't mind it, as it isn't debilitating and it doesn't prevent me from enjoying other food, but I swear to God, I can still taste the particular way those peppercorns numbed, excited, and had their way with my tastebuds over a week ago. Again, I'm not complaining, but it's odd sensation, and one I never had prior to this meal eight days ago. It's like the receptors for this flavor had never been fully stimulated before, but now that they've been awakened, good God, they're here and they're sticking around for the long haul. And they want more hydroxy alpha sanshool!

I can't be the only one to have had this experience. I desperately want to go back and have more of this delicious, lip numbing, hydroxy alpha sanshool-infused cuisine, but I'm a bit apprehensive, as it was a damn powerful experience that I can still taste the effects of eight days later. Is this a common non-Sichuan reaction to Sichuan cuisine?

posted by mosk to Food & Drink (9 answers total)

I didn't grow up eating anything like Szechuan food but a couple of years ago I bought a package of Szechuan peppercorn/prickly ash at an Asian market and I put it in stir fries some times and make my own five-spice powder.

I don't have the sort of reaction you describe but I experience a short-term change in my sense of taste that lasts maybe an hour or two. It's hard to generalize, but I normally don't care for the flavor of this artificial-sweetner drink very much until I've eaten something with the Szechuan peppercorn in it, after which it tastes fabulous.

Szechuan peppercorn by itself doesn't actually taste particularly spicy, btw; it does have the numbing effect of course, but the sort I've got, at least, tastes more like what you might expect a lemon-scented cleaning product to taste like.
posted by XMLicious at 6:07 PM on October 8, 2015

Best answer: I eat Sichuan peppers pretty often and have never had it last 8 days, or more than an hour at most. Is your tongue actually still numb or is it just some kind of phantom taste?
posted by pravit at 7:25 PM on October 8, 2015 [3 favorites]

Best answer: Ditto what pravit said. I cook with Sichuan peppercorn a lot; I've made vodka infusions and brewed beers with it, and I've never had the numbness last more than maybe 15 minutes.

Also, like XMLicious said, Sichuan peppercorn isn't at all spicy; there's no capsaicin in it and if you just eat a peppercorn straight you only feel the numbness. That being said, a lot of Sichuan dishes that use peppercorn also use gratuitous amounts of chillies, so you get a combination of the numbness and classic chili spice, the overall effect of which is incredible.

(Also also, if you love that flavor/sensation, see if you can get a hold of some Sichuan button flowers. I've only ever had one once but it was indescribable - if the numbing sensation from peppercorns is a AA battery, the Sichuan button is a car battery. It's amazing).
posted by Itaxpica at 7:50 PM on October 8, 2015 [2 favorites]

Response by poster: Thanks! Don't want to threadsit, but I should clarify that I'm not experiencing the numbness from the peppers, but I feel like I can still taste them. It's an odd physical sensation. It's low key and not too distracting, but it is...odd. And it began after that meal. Sounds like this isn't a common thing, but I'm ok with it.
posted by mosk at 8:12 PM on October 8, 2015

Eight days for this sort of thing is kind of crazy. Maybe talk to your doctor? I don't know that I'd schedule a special appointment, but dude, weird.

I've messed with my tastebuds eating spicy food before, but usually it doesn't last longer than a day or so. And it's usually a numbness or inability to taste, not still having the taste "stuck" in my mouth.

I'll also add that, as others have said, Sichuan peppercorn isn't "spicy" per se, so I'm not sure it's even possible to blow out your tastebuds with it in the way you can with wasabi or habaneros.
posted by Sara C. at 11:30 PM on October 8, 2015

Response by poster: Hmmm. Bodies are weird sometimes, and maybe pravit's right; "fantom taste" is probably the better description than numbness, and I'm a bit too focused on this. I've got a checkup coming up, and I'll ask about this then if it's still noticeable. Thanks, everyone.
posted by mosk at 2:25 AM on October 9, 2015

My husband is Tibetan and they cook with it a fair bit. They put it in the chilli sauce that I turn in to a dip and feed to people every week. I eat it almost every single day of my life. I've never had it last longer than ten to fifteen minutes.
posted by taff at 3:34 AM on October 9, 2015

Stupid question: could it be that you have a bit of peppercorn still stuck between your teeth or behind a tonsil or something?
posted by nebulawindphone at 8:47 AM on October 9, 2015 [6 favorites]

Response by poster: Although that would be a possible explanation, nebulawindphone, I don't think that's the case. It's more of a phantom taste that, frankly, I am probably imagining. There isn't any numbing, nor any sense of heat/spice/hotness, nor any "flavor", etc. Just a strong, very evocative "memory" of the effects that eating Sichuan cuisine left on my tastebuds.

I think the best way for me to get control of this issue is to go back for more Sichuan food. Mmmmmmm...

Thanks, all, for your time and contributions towards solving this little mystery. I am very satisfied with the answers I've received.
posted by mosk at 9:53 AM on October 9, 2015