10 Ways to Use Black Pepper You Never Knew About
Black pepper, just like table salt,
has an unexpected list of alternative uses that extend beyond seasoning
your meals. In fact, as you're about to find out, there's a lot more to
black pepper than meets the eye. Let's take a look:
1. Keep colors bright
After
your favorite bright-red top has been worn and washed a couple of
times, its color will start to fade. However, pepper can be used to help
your fabrics retain their bright color and prevent them from running
too. Just add a teaspoon of pepper to the wash load.
2. Keep your plants bug free
Pepper
can also be used as a natural pest control in the garden - after all,
there's nothing more frustrating than a swarm of bugs nibbling at your
plants. To keep bugs at bay, mix black pepper with flour and sprinkle
around the soil.
3. It will keep deer away too
While
deer may enjoy dining on a freshly budding garden, spraying your plants
and bushes with a cayenne pepper and water mixture will have them
dining elsewhere.
4. Keep ants out of the kitchen
Though
pepper's uses in the garden are bountiful, this powerful ingredient can
be used to keep ants away inside the home as well. The ants in your
kitchen are actually looking for sugar, so keep them at bay by
sprinkling cayenne pepper in spots along the backs of your counter tops
and on your baseboards.
5. Keep rodents from chewing on cable wires
Keep rodents away from your cable wires by spreading some black pepper on them.
6. Seal a leaking radiator in your car
Buy
yourself some time before taking your car to the repair shop. Pour a
spice-rack sized container of black pepper into the radiator. This will
flow into the split or pinhole, plugging the leak.
7. Stop a minor cut from bleeding
Pepper
may be applied to the body too. Prior to doing so, thoroughly rinse the
cut and dab the bleeding area with a clean, sterile cloth or paper
towel. Then, sprinkle some ground black pepper on the cut and secure it
with a bandage. This remedy will only work on small cuts. For deep cuts,
with heavy bleeding, seek professional medical attention.
8. Use pepper essential oil to alleviate arthritis pain
To
soothe the pain, create your own home-made warming massage by combining
the following oils together: 1 drop of almond oil, 2 drops pepper, 1
drop ginger and 2 drops lavender.
9. Use pepper to stop a migraine in its tracks
If you feel the beginning of a migraine
coming on, add a 1/4 to 1/2 a teaspoon of cayenne pepper to half a
glass of water. If the migraine doesn't subside 30 minutes later, drink
another glass.
10. Use pepper to help your liver detoxify
Combine
the following ingredients and drink up each morning: 1 lemon, squeezed,
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, 1 cup filtered water, 1 teaspoon maple
syrup.