Knowing your way around herbs and spices will make a huge difference to your cooking, especially when you have a mental map of what goes with what.
Paprika is a particularly versatile spice that’s a staple in a tonne of South American, Hungarian and Spanish cuisines, just to name a few. It also does well when sprinkled atop some poached eggs - you’re welcome.
Not only is it a tasty and versatile way to elevate your cooking, it’s surprisingly good for you.
Loaded up with vitamin A, capsaicin, and carotenoid antioxidants, it can help to prevent cancer and heart disease, look after your vision, strengthen your immune system and even reduce bloating.
Seeing as it’s such a common participant in our dishes, and it’s worth using it if you’re somehow unfamiliar, you’d think we’d all be clued up on where it comes from.
Chilli flakes, cumin, coriander, fennel, and cardamom all come from plants or seeds, as you likely already know, but if you’ve been imagining that there’s a paprika plant or seed out there then unfortunately you’re mistaken.
The clue, as it turns out, is in the same. ‘Paprika’ is the Hungarian name for peppers, and paprika comes from the red ones. The sweet ones, not the spicy ones.
The red peppers are dried out and then they’re ground down into a powder.
That powder is, you guessed it, paprika.
The revelation struck many people via an Instagram post from Nutra Organics, an Australian wellness brand, that said: "Learning that paprika is just dried and crushed red bell peppers was really shocking. I don't know why I thought there was a paprika tree somewhere."
Many a lightbulb came on across social media as people found themselves blown away by the trivia.
“I had no idea and I use it all the time. Mind is blown; might not sleep tonight,” said one person.
Another said: "Like I dunno why I thought there was a paprika tree somewhere."
Of course, the newly-educated weren’t the only people to leave comments, with plenty of other Instagram users decrying the lack of “common knowledge” amongst their contemporaries.
So there you have it. Paprika comes from red peppers, and it’s great on top of some poached eggs. Go forth and prosper.
Featured Image Credit: Hoberman Collection/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
Rachael Davis