Long pepper commanded a high price during the days of the Roman Empire – about three times the price of black pepper. With its flavor, both pungent and sweet, it was perfectly suited to Roman cooking which favored these two taste sensations.

Preparing
To use it, simply crush it with a mortar and pestle  

Cooking
It's great sprinkled on rounds of fresh goat cheese. Use it to make steak "au poivre." Go Medieval and make a sweet-spicy dessert by poaching pears in white wine, vanilla, a touch of sugar and lots of long pepper. 

You will find long pepper used in India for pickles, in Thailand for soups and stir fries and in Ethiopia for traditional meat stews. The spice mix berebere contains long pepper along with dried chiles, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and cardamom.