White pepper

The same berry as black pepper, but the outer layer is removed by soaking before drying. That layer holds most of the terpenes, so white pepper loses the fresh aroma of black pepper and keeps the piperine pungency. What is left is earthier, drier and slightly fermented. It also keeps more pinene in proportion, which is why it sits closer to galangal than black pepper does. Raise it when you have no galangal. The default pepper in Thai and in much Chinese cooking. Black pepper is not a neutral swap: it adds a top note the dish was not built for.