Botanical Name - Piper nigrum Category - Spices/Medicinal Form - Dry Part Used - Fruit General Information - Pepper (Piper nigrum) belongs to the family piperaceae and is known as the king of spices. It requires a specific temperature and rainfall for growth. The part used is small grapelike berries and dried parts and fruits of the perennial pepper plant. Capsicums, chili peppers, and paprika are also included in this category. The dissimilarity amongst them is not only due to their color, there are also wide differences in their botanic names and attributes. Contrary to other peppers, red pepper can be used fresh, ground, or in powdered form. The dried pepper is washed to eliminate stalks, peels, and stem heads. The white pepper is the product obtained from berries that are fully ripened. Phytochemicals- Piper nigrum (black pepper) is widely used in food industry due to its content of antioxidant and antimicrobial terpenoids (-pinene, pinene, 3-carene, limonene, terpinene-4-ol, p-cymene) and alkaloids (piperine and related compounds).