Shawn Hill's Guide to Paprika - Paprika Eureka

a Shawn Hill's Guide 

 Paprika - Eureka!

First off , there is an extreme LACK of information about Paprika on the interwebs.  I have now spent several hours researching this glorious spice. Like most people on Planet Earth I have the internet, and like most of those people I head to "THE ALL KNOWING SOURCE OF EVERYTHING" when I am starting my research on any subject.

According to "THE ALL KNOWING SOURCE OF EVERYTHING", Paprika is is a spice made from the grinding of dried fruits of Capsicum annuum (bell peppers or chili peppers). Capsicum peppers used for paprika are unusually rich in vitamin C, a fact discovered in 1932 by Hungary's 1937 Nobel prize-winner Albert Szent-Györgyi."

So what type of pepper is used specifically for making Paprika?

www.foodreference.com had the most helpful information.

"Paprika is a red powder that is made from grinding the dried pods of mild varieties of the pepper plant known as (Capsicum annuum L.) The pepper plants used to make this spice range from the sweet Bell pepper to the milder chili peppers. The Paprika peppers originally grown were hot. Over time, they have evolved to the milder varieties. In Hungary there are six classes or types of paprika ranging from delicate to hot. The peppers also range in size and shape depending on where they are grown . Some are grown in Spain, Hungary, California and other parts of the U.S. The most commonly produced paprika is made from the sweet red pepper also called the tomato pepper."

Here are a few of the other websites that I found useful in my research.

www.thehungariangirl.com - she had tons of info on hungarian paprika in her blog entry.

www.about.com - actually specifys chili peppers. 

http://honest-food.net/ - he has interesting info on making your own paprika! He uses chilies because he likes the taste. But you don't have to use chili peppers. You can use any red pepper you desire.

The other pepper mentioned  in my Paprika research was the Alma Paprika Pepper.You can find an interesting article on peppers over at Grit.com by Debbie Nowicki - 2009.

I then began looking at companies that distribute all types of spices. I was trying to see if one of them had some information on where their Paprika came from and what type of pepper was used....

Savory Spice Shop - Has one of the better websites. It is very simple, plenty of info and very easy to navigate. I also found information on their California Sweet Paprika, which is made from a hybrid pepper plant.

The Great American Spice Company - has tons and tons of spices and herbs. I was truely amazed at all the sorts of things you can get!

The Spice Barn - has similar spices as The Great American Spice Company, just not as many. They also have a very boring website with way too much text.

The Spice Hunter - Nice looking, well done website, lack of info and pictures.

Fuchs North America - Has a nice looking easy to navigate website. No pictures of the spices but I  like how they breakdown their products into categories. It happens to list Paprika under "Capsicums" along with Bell Peppers (red/green), Chili Peppers, Red Pepper and Jalapeño Peppers.

McCormick - Which can be found in most grocery stores. Generic or Gourmet. The website might not have much info. But I found something worth noting. in both kinds McCormick added SILICON DIOXIDE (ahem. That's basically SAND, if you didn't know).

They do this to add to its "flowability". To make the powder flow better. Wow,  I just can't believe that! Does every company add Silicon Dioxide to their Paprika?

What have we learned so far??

1. Paprika is made from grinding dried peppers (usually red)

2. Paprika can be mild or hot (depending on the pepper), the yellower the hue of Paprika, the hotter it is.

3. Paprika is mainly made in Spain, Hungry and the United States

4. Hungarian Paprika is considered to be the best.

So, It all comes down to place and pepper when it comes to Paprika.

Even though the original peppers used for Paprika were rather hot, their modern cousins are a bit milder in comparison. Also, depending on the region where the peppers are grown contributes to its taste properties. Over the years, peppers have been cross bred to produce the perfect flavor, much like in California with their hybrid pepper.

The Spanish use a different variety from the Americans, who use a different variety from the Hungarians. Much like birds on different continents evolve over time to better fit thier surroundings, peppers evolved over time as well. Now we have many many varieties of red peppers all with slightly different flavors.

Though Paprika is made from Red Peppers, some varieties of Red Peppers make a different type of spice...  like Cayenne Peppers become Ground Cayenne Pepper and Red Pepper Flakes come from dried Red Chilies which are hotter than the peppers used for paprika.

But don't confuse Paprika with either Ground Cayenne or Red Pepper Flakes, both have more heat to them. Paprika is mild in heat unless otherwise noted.

Also don't confuse Paprika with Chili Powder. Chili Powder is a mix of several spices.

AND MOST OF ALL, don't confuse any of them with ALLSPICE! That is something different all together, and is the focus of another lesson plan.

Here I am, sitting deer-eyed, looking at a virtual world of unorganized misinformation about the common spices we use in our kitchen. It felt just like I was standing in the aisle of my local supermarket, looking at the mess of spices in the tiny corner where they usually house them.

Now, I find myself staring at this computer screen in this virtual spice aisle trying to figure out what PAPRIKA actually is.

and the conclusion I've come to is.....

If it ain't paprika,

then it ain't paprika!