Black pepper

Vietnam is the world’s largest producer and exporter of black pepper – pepper from the Central Highlands and Phú Quốc island is especially famous.

Black pepper is a perennial climber with woody stems that clambers up stakes, trees or walls by means of clinging roots. It has glossy, heart-shaped leaves and hanging spikes of tiny flowers that develop into round fruits, ripening from green to red. Fruits picked unripe and dried in the sun turn black and wrinkled, giving black pepper, while ripe fruits stripped of their outer layer give white pepper. The spice owes its pungency to the alkaloid piperine.

Significance in the country

Since the early 21st century Vietnam has been the world’s largest pepper exporter, accounting for a large share of global trade. It is grown mainly by smallholders, often on the same farms as coffee, and in the kitchen pepper is an essential seasoning for dishes such as fish and meat braised in caramel (kho).

Where it grows

Grown mainly in the Central Highlands (Đắk Lắk, Đắk Nông, Gia Lai) and in the south-east of the country (Bình Phước, Đồng Nai, Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu), as well as on Phú Quốc island and in Quảng Trị province.

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