Why is smoked paprika so flavorful? How do I use it?

Dot a little plain paprika on your tongue, and not a lot of discovery happens. It might surprise you, but basic paprika alone doesn’t have a unique flavor profile or a familiarity about it. Its heft comes chiefly from its color, so recipes often have a significant portion, often more than a teaspoon, or it’s used as a garnish, sprinkled on for color.

When my mother wanted only a little heat in her Indian curries, she would use deep red paprika instead of a good portion of the chile powder. That’s not a typical use, but it worked, and the flavor of Indian spices masked any minimal flavor that the paprika attempted to bestow.

Why does paprika have more color than flavor or heat? Because it is made from dried red bell peppers, which don’t have much of a bite and whose sweetness disappears in the powdered form. The bright color and somewhat neutral flavor come in handy, for instance, in deviled eggs or potato salads.

But basic paprika isn’t the only kind of paprika you’ll see at the store.

Hungarian paprika, which might be harder to find than basic paprika, has a distinct flavor due to the climate where the peppers are grown. It is sweeter in flavor and more nuanced but still isn’t a bold spice t hatmovesthedish forward or gives it recognition. Traditional Hungarian dishes that use this spice are chicken paprikash or ghoulash, and it might be labelled sweet Hungarian paprika or noble sweet paprika.

My favorite is Spanish paprika or pimentón, which is usually made of red peppers that have been slowly smoked. Smoked paprika can be further classified into mild (dulce), bittersweet (agrodulce) and hot (picante), but even the hot smoked paprika isn’t as spicy or biting as cayenne.

Spanish paprika is worth stocking in your pantry, if you were to only buy one kind. Smoky ye t also hot, this paprika can be redolent of chipotle powder, but I wouldn’t substitute one for another because the peppers are qu ite different and chipotle is definitely the hotter of the two.

With only moderate he at,this spice is an excellent way to add