Guide to Aleppo Pepper: How to Cook With Aleppo Pepper

Aleppo pepper is the semi-dried, ground form of the ripe Halaby pepper, which looks like a jalapeño pepper but is about four times hotter and has a sweeter, more complex flavor profile. Aleppo pepper is named after the Silk Road city of Aleppo in northern Syria. It is most commonly grown in Syria, Turkey, and the United States.

In the fifteenth century, European explorers first brought peppers from the Americas back to Europe. From there, peppers spread throughout the Ottoman Empire to places like Turkey and Syria, where the Aleppo pepper (Capsicum annum) emerged. To preserve the Aleppo pepper's flavor and heat, Syrians traditionally sun-dried the peppers with a little bit of salt, yielding a red pepper flake that is slightly salty and oily—perfect for use as a condiment.

You can find Aleppo pepper at Middle Eastern grocery stores, specialty spice shops, and online. Look for pepper flakes that are a deep burgundy color with a fresh, fruity smell. It's common for Aleppo pepper to have an oily texture and salty flavor, due to the traditional sun-drying process. If shopping in a Turkish grocery store, you may find Aleppo pepper under the name pul biber.

Aleppo pepper is the perfect way to add heat to Middle Eastern and Mediterranean dishes like Muhammara dip, hummus, and ful medames, as well as marinades for grilled meat like shish kebabs. Try sprinkling it anywhere you would normally add another type of chile pepper: on roasted vegetables, deviled eggs, or even popcorn.

You can substitute nearly any red pepper flakes for Aleppo pepper. Familiarize yourself with the spice levels of both Aleppo pepper and the red pepper substitute determining whether to add more or less to achieve the same flavor. Keep in mind that Aleppo pepper is about half as spicy as standard red pepper flakes. Some common substitutions include ancho chiles, Marash chiles, and Urfa chile peppers, or a mix of cayenne pepper, Hungarian or Spanish paprika, and a pinch of salt.

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