# Pepper and other spices



## icMojo (Jul 6, 2016)

Looking for a good supplier of black pepper for use and as a trade item, anyone have suggestions or good experiences to share?


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## crabapple (Jan 1, 2012)

I know some one who orders black pepper by the truck load, I will try to get a name or two from you.
Maybe a few days before I get the names for you.

http://www.offthegridnews.com/survival-gardening-2/the-ultimate-guide-to-growing-black-pepper/

http://whatscookingamerica.net/Information/Pepper.htm

https://www.olivenation.com/wholesa...8kZ_uxZo-5oJcPdcAiT7HMQmRwIersYpY8RoCYFrw_wcB


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## icMojo (Jul 6, 2016)

Thanks, I think about things like salt and sugar, but pepper and other spices just seemed to have slipped through the cracks


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## crabapple (Jan 1, 2012)

I joined the whole sale link, for free.
Here what I found.



Five Peppercorn Mix

Five Peppercorn Mix
INSTOCK
2 REVIEW(S) | ADD YOUR REVIEW
$7.25
Peppercorns Can Spice Up Your Favorite Dishes. Choose From Various Sizes Of Five Peppercorns Mix.
Size: 1 oz
$8.06 $7.25 2 oz
$11.61 $10.45 4 oz
$15.17 $13.65 8 oz
$23.94 $21.55 16 oz (1 lb)
$40.61 $36.55 32 oz (2 lbs)
$72.39 $65.15 80 oz (5 lbs)
$167.28 $150.55
QTY
No photo & the price where clearer on the page.
You can get only one kind of each of the 5, but to get wholesale(25% discount) you must live in the USA & buy $500.00 at one time.


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## Genevieve (Sep 21, 2009)

I've found the bottles of the stuff at the dollar tree stores are easy to stock and would be a good size for trading. Whats a couple of dollars when you go there for something else? They have salt too but I think the price is expensive compared to regular grocery store's price for a round of salt.
Theres always the little paper servings at fast food joints too. Just keep them dry in the dark and they should last for a while. Same with sugar packets.

Dollar tree stores also have the basic spices like cinnamon,cloves and nutmeg.


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## terri9630 (Jun 2, 2016)

I don't use a lot of pepper so I just pick up whole peppercorns in bulk at Sams club when we go. Maybe a pound a year/year and a half for my husband to add after I get my "portion".


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## Woody (Nov 11, 2008)

Don't know what quantity you are looking for.

I have the bottles of pepper corns and a regular McCormick grinder, right from the spice rack. You can muscle the top off to refill that and the salt grinders. Relatively small containers (couple ounces to a pound) of coarse sea salt and peppercorns can be had and are sealed. The pepper, even in seed form, will only last a few years then lose flavor. Or so I read, I have not had experience with really long tem storage of them in the open. Couple years is all.

If you are thinking larger quantities, I bought herbs and spices from Mountain Rose Herbs a long time ago, before I started growing my own. You can get large quantities of just about anything you can think of, and then some! Organic, Fair Trade and Kosher are offered with most varieties of herbs. They also tell you which country they came from. Now, there is a nice blurb about each one, below the window to buy. Ounce or several pounds I never had any troubles from them. They are not in containers, they were all just bagged up for transportation and delivery. Yes, delivered in a box not just bags! I am not affiliated with them nor have I ever worked for them. Just the company I found and did business with years ago.

I just went and browsed their site. It's a good place to go if you ever wanted to know something about a certain spice!


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## icMojo (Jul 6, 2016)

Hey thanks folks. I've got a couple 50# bags of salt, about half that in sugar, a good bit of honey. I just forgot the other bits, like oregano. I doubt I'd use 50# in most cases, so I thought they'd make great trade goods. I noted the prices and thought "SHEESH!" and they turned to you guys, hoping you'd all have some buddy of a pal that had 100# of peppercorns for a buck and a quarter


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## DrPrepper (Apr 17, 2016)

Like terri, I get my peppercorns in bulk from Sams Club. I repackage them in smaller vacuum sealed bags and then put them in a food-safe bucket. We opened a bag the other day from 2010 and it still tasted as fresh as when we bought it. I don't buy pink peppercorns (not really peppercorns, really a berry) so I don't know how well they keep. I also don't waste money on green peppercorns (unripe black ones) or white peppercorns (just the black ones with skins removed). 

Nutmeg is another spice that keeps really well in its un-grated state. I also store a lot of other spices- mostly in seed state - such as cumin, coriander, and caraway. The big thing is to keep them as free of oxygen as possible and store in a relatively cool dark place. I also have some unusual spices (fennel pollen, for example, and a homemade Chinese 5 spice mixture) that have kept well over the years.

Garlic powder, onion powder, and big bottles of dehydrated diced onions (also from Sams) also keep really well.

Herbs also store well dried, but they do lose potency after a while. I'm glad the herbs from my garden (oregano, thyme, sage, parsley, dill, basil, and tarragon) have all seeded out over the years and now also grow wild in my yard!


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## terri9630 (Jun 2, 2016)

Most spices that need to be ground will stay fresh or keep better if left whole until needed. We raise/dehydrate most of our own (onions, garlic, herbs) and leave them in big pieces so we can grind them down later.


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## weedygarden (Apr 27, 2011)

I buy my spices from various places. I buy them at Sam's club, H-Mart (Asian Market), Dollar stores, Big Lots, and the grocery stores when certain things are on sale.

I have worked on getting the spices I use together. I like to buy them in the restaurant sized package. I built a shelf in a narrow space that is just for them. I also built another shelf for my smaller bottles of spices and hung it on the end of one of my cabinets. It has most of my spices, but not all, because they wouldn't all fit. 

I also buy spices in bulk from my local Sprouts Market. I store them in jars. I have a couple boxes of spices for longer term storage.

Some spices are better to grow fresh in pots, such as rosemary, basil, and more. I have tried, but they seem to die in the winter, no matter how I try. There are perennial herbs that you can plant in your garden that will come back every year (sage, lavender, chives, thyme, and more).


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## Caribou (Aug 18, 2012)

Costco has the larger containers of spices.

We get most of our spices at Penzey's. You can find better prices but we are very pleased with the quality and are willing to pay the difference.

https://www.penzeys.com


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## crabapple (Jan 1, 2012)

Anyone read -The Spice and Herb Bible,2nd edition
By Ian Hemphill


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