A small yellowish flower head of the Spilanthes acmella or Paracress plant, the Sechuan Button (also known as the Sansho button) looks innocent enough; one bite though and you will know its mouth-numbing secret. Long used for medicinal purposes, this South American native is getting a lot of attention lately in the adventurous cooking ingredient category. Listed by Food & Wine magazine recently as one of the “100 Tastes to Try” in 2008, Sechuan Buttons are making the rounds at food trade shows and are finding their ways into U.S. restaurant kitchens.
Cooking Ingredient of the Year
Commonly known by its far less appetizing folk name of “toothache” or “eyeball” plant, these edible flowers have been reborn for culinary use under the trade names of Sechuan Buttons (named by Koppert Cress) and Sansho Buttons (by Sun Grown Organic Distributors). Listed as the 2007 “Cooking Ingredient of the Year” by Esquire magazine and getting press in the Washington Post and other media outlets, these little buds are described less for how they taste and more for how they feel. Described as electric, Sechuan Buttons provide a kick that comes in waves, starting with a fresh citrusy tang, moving to a peppering of the tongue and a numbing of the cheeks, and ending with a cool mouth-watering finish.
So, what do these new darlings of the extreme food world really taste like? The Washington Post has a video that is available on You Tube called “Taste Test: Button Up” that may give you an idea without actually having to try them yourself. In this video, Sechuan Buttons were given to four Washington Post journalists to taste and to describe their reactions. “WOW” is a reasonable summary description of their responses, although their facial expressions are a better indicator of the intensity of the experience. In all cases, the uniqueness of the culinary encounter was apparent.
Award Winning Sushi With Sechuan Buttons
Beyond the novelty snack factor, what are people cooking up with this stimulating blossom? More commonly used in parts of Asia, Africa and South America, Sechuan Buttons are still largely an experimental ingredient in restaurants here in the U.S. However, Sechuan Buttons have figured prominently in award-winning sushi, are a compliment to hot peppers in some recipes, make a mean cocktail, and also find their way into various meat and seafood dishes, sauces and deserts. Actually, they are pretty tasty mixed with a bit of creamy goat cheese and spread on a cracker.
