French cuisine and Espelette pepper (a.k.a.piment d’Espelette) go hand in hand. It’s the pepper of the Basque region and a staple for local spicy recipes due to its tasty sweet flavor and moderate heat. So it’s likely, if you’re exploring French cuisine, that you’ll stumble upon the need for this chili in its dried powder form. But what if you can’t find it? What’s a good Espelette pepper substitute when your local grocer doesn’t carry this spicy powder? Let’s run through your top options.
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The hands-down best alternative: Paprika
There is so much in common between paprika and piment d’Espelette powder: a slight smokiness, a mild sweetness, and, if you choose your paprika right, a similar heat profile. Paprika comes in many flavors — in fact, it has its own scale — so be careful what you choose when trying to match that Espelette flavor.
The best match is non-smoked hot paprika for two main reasons:
- Generic or mild paprikas come in well milder than Espelette pepper; they typically have a pimento base which tops out at the mildest an Espelette pepper can be (100 to 500 Scoville heat units). Hot paprika has a heat more in line with Espelette (500 to 4,000 SHU), and they can be even hotter.
- Smoked paprika tends to be much smokier than the smokiness you get naturally from the Espelette pepper. The smoke becomes the main taste, whereas piment d’Espelette has a subtle mix of smoke and sweetness. You’ll find the flavor profile of non-smoked paprika more alike.
Learn More: Smoked Paprika Vs. Regular Paprika — How Do They Compare?
Your next best bet: Cayenne powder
If your spice rack is low or out of paprika, you can lean on another common spice with heat. Cayenne powder can do as an alternative to Espelette pepper in a pinch, but the heat and flavor profiles are quite different.
Cayenne pepper is much hotter (30,000 to 50,000 SHU) and much more neutral in taste, so use less (start with a pinch and add more to taste) and know that your dish will be missing that critical smoky sweetness that Espelette brings to the table.
If you can find it: Aleppo Pepper
The flavor profile of Aleppo pepper is well-suited to sub in for Espelette pepper than cayenne, but where cayenne is common, Aleppo pepper is much tougher chili powder to find.
Still, if you have Aleppo pepper powder, use it. Its complex earthy raisin-like taste fits well with rustic cuisines. You won’t miss out on flavor as you may with cayenne. Just remember: Aleppo pepper is at least twice as hot as Espelette. Not nearly as hot as cayenne, but enough that your recipe’s spiciness level will rise.
In a pinch: Red pepper flakes
Red pepper flakes (otherwise known as crushed red pepper) are roughly of equal heat to Espellete at its top end, and they can be easily found in most supermarkets. In addition, red pepper flakes are often much less expensive than Espelette pepper, making them a cost-effective alternative. But you do lose out on flavor. Red pepper flakes are more neutral in taste. Keep that in mind if you’re relying on that sweet, lightly smoky flavor of Espelette pepper in your recipe.
Also, you’ll likely want to crush your red pepper flakes further. Flakes act differently than finer powders when cooking. They sit atop a meal (and as such vary the heat) compared to ground powders that permeate a dish.
Must-read related posts
- Cayenne Pepper Vs. Red Pepper Flakes: Two good alternatives for piment d’Espelette, but how do they compare?
- Are Dried Peppers Hotter Than Fresh? For instance if you’re comparing a fresh chili pepper to its dried equivalent, which is hotter? Does drying impact heat?
- Hungarian Vs. Spanish Paprika: These two countries are known for their paprika. How are they similar? Different?
We visited the Basque region in 2018. I am looking for Espelette *paste* to purchase on line.
A California based producer grows the American version, Piment d’ville. I’ve never had the french version, but this stuff is delicious!
https://www.pimentdville.com/shop