I'm always looking for new things to experiment with, and recently I was introduced to a little known rarity called the "Sechuan Button." The buds of a plant known as the "tootheache plant" for its medicinal purposes, distributors in the U.S. have renamed the buds Sechuan or Sancho buttons to showcase the tingling fire they leave on your tongue, reminiscent of the like-named chili peppers. In fact, the plant is a relative of the sunflower, and has no relation to peppers.
The taste is very invigorating, like a jolt of electricity through your mouth that lasts a good 3-5 minutes. It begins with a crisp, lemony flavor, and then comes the tingle. If it could be described, eating these little treats is much like putting a dandelion in your mouth, having it magically turn into a lemon wedge, morph again into a hot pepper, and finally melt into a cube of ice. Throughout the experience the buttons also set off your salivary glands and keep your tongue watering like a fire hose. After my first Sechuan button I walked around for 5 minutes worried I was going accidentally drool on myself.
Needless to say, I've never tasted much of anything like it. My first thought was cocktails! And a friend mentioned they wanted to use it in a sorbet. Since this has a ton of citrus, and heat, but without the earthy saltiness of a pepper, I imagine muddled Sechuan buttons would be the perfect addition to any light cocktail for people who want something spicy but are margarita-no-salt kind of folks.
So for those of you watering at the mouth just imagining these little electric flowers, find them here as "Sancho Buttons": http://www.sungrownorganics.com/
