dry vs fresh

[FROG DOG]

I'm wondering everyone's opinion on the purest flavor from a pod. Obviously a fresh pod has a lot of water content which must interfere with the purity of the flavor. Powder is straight pepper mass minus all the water.....but is it tainted? a little more musty?......i personally love my powders and the flavors it brings to cooking but i was wondering about this today. I feel like fresh pods have quite a different flavor profile than the powders they make.

sorry if this topic has been covered 

 

[RobStar]

Very different. Fresh has more of the ethereal flavour. Powders are more dull. I'm referring to chinense.

Capsicum anuum I obviously prefer as dried. The flavour is more developed.

But chinense? Hmmmmm. Having said that: Bhut Jolokia powder rocks! My favourite powder by a long shot.

 

[The Hot Pepper]

Raw pepper. The water content/juice/oil is all part of the profile. Take a banana for example. Dried banana that is concentrated in flavor often tastes artificial to me, but that is "pure" banana flavor as you say. But to me the "true" flavor is in the raw fruit.

 

[FROG DOG]

hey thanks!!

 

[shadrack]

I think purees retain a lot of the true pepper flavor of a fresh pod.  They aren't perfect but a good way to split the difference between frozen and dried.  Plus they store well if you pressure can them and are also easy to use when cooking.  

 

[CelticFarmer]

Fresh peppers really shine with their oil front and center. Powder has its place, but you can't beat a fresh pepper sweating its oil in your pan.