Almost immediately, you see the difference between the fresh spiced paprika and the sweet peppers. The spiced paprika is slightly sharper than the other. They both belong, like the chili, to the plant genus Capsicum. They are Solanaceae, and besides, Capsicum Annuum is the most widely used variety in Europe.
Their stature height can be up to several meters, they have egg-shaped green leaves. They bloom with white flowers, and from these, the paprika fruits form, in the beginning, they are green and turn, when ripe, yellow to red. Capsicum Annuum is a perennial shrub. The cold winters in the north cause the plants to die. They are then re-seeded annually.
The different paprika powders do not come from various paprika varieties but different production processes. The hot paprika powder is made from whole dried fruits. They contain the sharp inner walls and the seeds of the fruits, which are responsible for the spiciness of the spice powder.
For the mild paprika powder, they gut the pods after harvest and remove their inner sidewalls. Then they are dried and pulverized.
Culinary use
The national spice of Hungary came to our region as a spice for goulash. You make your goulash with a lot of mild spicy paprika and onions. Paprika is also generously used for the preparation of many stews and poultry dishes (such as fried chicken). It finds use in sauces, marinades, salads, cheese spreads, as sprinkles over fried eggs.
Storage
Please fill all spices, in jars, with screw cap closure. Store the glasses with your spices in a dry, cool place, and protect them from the direct sun. The ideal temperature is 15 °C.
