Mountain Pepper (Litsea cubeba)

Family: Lauraceae | Edibility: Edible (2/5)

Litsea cubeba is a deciduous Shrub growing to 7 m (23ft). It is in flower from March to April, and the seeds ripen from August to September. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs). Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers moist soil.

Edible Parts & Harvest Seasons

Edible Parts: Fruit, Roots/Tubers

Harvest Seasons: Early Summer, Fall, Late Summer, Spring, Winter

Flavor & Culinary Uses

flavouring for tea. — The fragrant flowers are eaten or used as a flavouring for tea.; The fruits are eaten as a vegetable side dish, and are a common substitute for cubeb pepper (Piper cubeba).; The fruit, bark and leaves are often used by the Karen people of N.; Thailand as a curry ingredient in a dish called 'Kaeng Nuea'.

Habitat & North American Range

Sunny slopes, thickets, sparse forests, roadsides, watersides, 500 - 3200 metres in Anhui, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Sichuan, Xizang, Yunnan, Zhejiang. (Zone 10)