This eye-opener of a book unveils pepper’s rich, chequered and sometimes implausible history both as a commodity and cooking ingredient. It is packed with pepper facts and a feast of recipes, some surprising, others happily familiar. A must for the pepper enthusiast.

Author of many cookery books and five times nominated for World Food Media Awards Christine McFadden is a well-established food writer with a deep interest in the many aspects of food and its provenance. She has a passion for spices and seasonings and the way in which they transform the character of a dish; she also has a particular interest in the historical impact ingredients such as these have on culture, politics and economics. She is also the author of The Farm Shop Cookbook.