For the West African pepper Piper guineense, see West African pepper. Khmeli-suneli recipe cubeba, cubeb or tailed pepper is a plant in genus Piper, cultivated for its fruit and essential oil. Cubeb came to Europe via India through the trade with the Arabs.
Cubeb is mentioned in alchemical writings by its Arabic name. In the fourth century BC, Theophrastus mentioned komakon, including it with cinnamon and cassia as an ingredient in aromatic confections. In the Tang Dynasty, cubeb was brought to China from Srivijaya. In India, the spice came to be called kabab chini, that is, “Chinese cubeb”, possibly because the Chinese had a hand in its trade, but more likely because it was an important item in the trade with China. The Book of One Thousand and One Nights, compiled in the 9th century, mentions cubeb as a remedy for infertility, showing it was already used by Arabs for medicinal purposes. Cubeb was introduced to Arabic cuisine around the 10th century. In the 14th century, cubeb was imported into Europe from the Grain Coast, under the name of pepper, by merchants of Rouen and Lippe.
After the prohibition of its sale in Portugal in 1640, culinary use of cubeb decreased dramatically in Europe, and only its medicinal application continued to the 19th century. In the early 20th century, cubeb was regularly shipped from Indonesia to Europe and the United States. Cubebene, the liquid portion, has the formula C15H24 and comes in two forms, α- and β-. Eugène Soubeiran and Hyacinthe Capitaine in 1839. It may be prepared from cubebene, or from the pulp left after the distillation of the oil. In Europe, cubeb was one of the valuable spices during the Middle Ages. It was ground as a seasoning for meat or used in sauces.
