Yamatsu Tsujita Stone Milled Sansho Powder "Prickily Ash"

Often called "Japanese pepper" or "prickly ash," Sansho is a truly ancient spice, with bright, citrusy aromatics, and an otherworldly sensation that lightly numbs lips and causes mouths to water. This particular selection is a delicate blend of three varieties of sansho: Yamakura, Asakura and Budo, coalescing with a depth of flavor that shines through all of this spice's superficial sensations.

In operation for over one hundred years, Osaka’s Yamatsu Tsujita is a venerated name in the world of fine Japanese spices. Kept in the family, today’s master blender is Mr. Tsujita, who maintains a proudly tight-knit association with all of the farmers who grow the spices for his blends. One of this mixture’s key distinguishing ingredients is Misho Yuzu, a never-grafted variety of indigenous yuzu citrus that takes fifteen years to mature from seed to fruit-bearing tree. Once picked, the fruits are hand-peeled and dried before the peels are stone-ground in a slow, deliberate rhythm lasting half a day. To form the final mixture, the ground yuzu peel is mixed with the Hawk’s Claw pepper, Asakura Sansho pepper, Ao-nori seaweed, golden sesame seeds, poppy seeds, and shiso. To best preserve its freshness, we recommend freezing Shichimi Togarashi once it has made its way to you.

Best stored in the freezer to maintain freshness

Ingredients: ground dried Japanese pepper (sansho)