Teflam seeds

Clove-colored teflam seeds (they are actually berries, not seeds) look like the animated Pacman from the well-known video game. Unique to the Hindu community of Goa, along the Konkan coast in southwestern India, teflam seeds are rarely used in other communities. The Portuguese call the spice limao arcado, “acrid lime,” which accurately describes its flavor and aroma: sharp and citruslike, especially when toasted and ground. The seeds have an anesthetic, numbing quality when bit into, even in small amounts. Teflam is closely related to Sichuan peppercorns, which can be used as an alternative. If you don’t have either teflam or Sichuan peppercorns, toast equal proportions of whole cloves, black peppercorns, and dried lemon peel, and then grind the mixture.