Bay of Ishigaki Jima, Yaeyama Archipelago
Discovering a rare pepper on Ishigaki Jima
I was thus heading to Ishigaki Jima, the main island of the Yaeyama Archipelago, to the south-west of Okinawa. This is located 3 hours from Tokyo, 260 km east of Taiwan.
The island has a renowned coral reef. Jima means "island" and Ishigaki means "stone wall". When you walk around this volcanic island, you very quickly understand, as the terrain is rugged and the ground incredibly rocky.
I therefore went to meet the 2 main growers of the cooperative created specifically to bring together these atypical producers, staunch advocates of genuine and responsible farming.
Discovering the "pipatsu" plants
Hirata San has around 1,000 plants and Fujiwara San has nearly 3,500 plants of "pipatsu", a true (piper retrofractum) long pepper.
The pepper plant is a vine and therefore thrives along a support tree or an artificial stake.
The pepper plant grows as a vine and climbs upwards.
An artificial stake holds two plants, each plant yielding 2 to 3 kg of catkins (and not berries), as we are dealing with a long pepper. A tree can, for its part, accommodate up to 4 plants. In that case, the plant is grafted onto the support tree.
For this pepper, there are neither male nor female plants — the plant is self-fertile. The catkins appear after 1 to 12 months following the development of the vine.
The plant's exposure is very important. Harsh direct sunlight should be avoided, such as the western sun in the late afternoon. The pepper thrives preferably in the shade; no direct sunlight during the day. The island of Ishigaki is located in a subtropical zone where the temperature can reach 35°C in summer but where humidity is extremely high.
The catkins are harvested smooth and shiny, exclusively by hand, from June to October. They are then steamed for 10 minutes at 100°C to destroy any mould. They are then dried naturally in full sunlight for 48 hours.
Unlike its Indonesian cousin, this long pepper grows upwards.
A pepper recognised by Japan's finest chefs
This pepper is acclaimed by Japan's finest chefs. My friend and companion Gérard Vives describes it as a truly great pepper, exceptional. Its olfactory notes are surprisingly reminiscent of dulce de leche.
It is worth noting that the leaves of this pepper plant are sublime in tempura.
Puréed, their basil notes make them an obvious pairing for strawberry or raspberry sorbets. To taste this long pepper from Ishigaki Jima, the pipatsu, visit the Nishikidori shop.
