Food and cooking articles and information:

Cooking with Capers
by Linda Stradley

Capers are the unopened green flower buds of the Capparis Spinosa, a wild and cultivated bush grown mainly in Mediterranean countries (southern France, Italy, and Algeria)and also in California.

Manual labor is required to gather capers, for the buds must be picked each morning just as they reach the proper size. After the buds are picked, they are usually sun dried, then pickled in a vinegar brine.

Capers can range in size from that of a tiny peppercorn (the petite variety from southern France, considered the finest) to some as large as the tip of your little finger (from Italy).

Capers generally come in brine but can also be found salted and sold in bulk. Either way, rinse before using to flush away as much salt as possible.

Capers can lend piquancy to many sauces and condiments; they can also be used as a garnish for meat and vegetable dishes.

Recipes by Linda using Capers:

Baked Salmon Piccata

Chicken Piccata

Fettuccine Piccata

This article has been published with the kind permission of Linda Stradley who runs the What's Cooking America web site <click here> and has a new book available called I'll Have What They're Having: Legendary Local Cuisine - for details or to purchase <click here>

© Linda Stradley - What's Cooking America