What to do with grains of paradise?

This was a discussion topic on tonight's chat.

Anyone got a recipe that uses grains of paradise?

-Paul W.

I use them occasionally in place of black pepper. I think they occur naturally in Caribbean and North African cuisines.

Somewhere I do; I'll look. BTW, if you drink Bombay Sapphire gin, grains of paradise are one of the flavorings.

[Jenise]

Somewhere I do; I'll look. BTW, if you drink Bombay Sapphire gin, grains of paradise are one of the flavorings.

Never owned nor tasted them that I am aware of. Haven't even seen them for purchase and turned them down. Where do you buy yours?

I've gotten them at O&Co and at a neighborhood spice shop named Two For The Pot.

Betsy got some once for some N. African (I think) recipe. I liked. But since then I had moved around spice cabinet a lot.

I found and bought a bottle of them at a local gourmet food shop. They caught my eye because I'd seen them listed as one of the botanicals on the Bombay Sapphire gin bottle. But other than the general information that they've been used in the past as a substitute for black pepper, I haven't a clue what to do with them (distilling my own gin isn't an option).

-Paul W.

Somewhere I do; I'll look. BTW, if you drink Bombay Sapphire gin, grains of paradise are one of the flavorings.

Never owned nor tasted them that I am aware of. Haven't even seen them for purchase and turned them down. Where do you buy yours?

Take a look on Amazon. They're used in African and some Middle Eastern cooking.

I got mine when I was doing a food-judge gig that was held at a cooking school. I spied a large container of grains-of-paradise and sweet-talked the chef into giving me some.

If you hit Google, you can find GoP for sale on the 'net.

[Jenise]

If you hit Google, you can find GoP for sale on the 'net.

Thanks for the nudge, I'll go look.

[Robin Garr]

Thanks for the nudge, I'll go look.

I picked up a small bag at a little herb-and-spice shop here (sort of a local version of Penzey's) and played around with them a little. I rolled some walleye fillets in a mix of cornmeal, Parmigiano-Reggiano and crushed grains of paradise in more or less equal proportions, then baked until the fish was done and the Parmesan melty. It was okay, but frankly, I find the G of P smell great in the jar but don't really add much flavor or aroma to the dish. Maybe I didn't use enough?

Maybe I didn't use enough?

I think I read that they cook-out easily.

[Robin Garr]

Maybe I didn't use enough?

I think I read that they cook-out easily.

Ahhh, very logical. Thanks, Jeff!

Paul,
Thanks for remembering to post this query. I had mentioned Grains of Paradise in chat because my husband and I had just been to Findley Mkt (a street market) in Cincinnati, where we met Col De Ray at the Herbs and Spice booth. Col De Ray is a wealth of information and obviously loves an audience with whom to share it.
After tasting just one grain of the G of P we were struck with the way it evolved on the palate, stimulating the sides and finishing on the tip...and the finish went on and on. Certainly more interesting than white or cayenne pepper. We will experiment with uses, but would love to see other recipes the good folks here have tried.

You may check out Col De Ray's selection online at http://www.HerbsSpice.com (and no, I do not have any affiliation with him.)

JuliaB