The Essential Ingredient

If meat is the body of your dish, then spices are the personality. Some give sweetness, a few are sour and others give your dish attitude. Paprika, the popular Spanish and Eastern European spice, brings mystery, warmth and that rich, unmistakable colour.

Paprika, first produced in Spain with the name ‘Pimentón’, is made by grinding down dried capsicum and chilli pepper fruits, the differing combinations of fruit types producing the assorted paprika variants (sweet, hot, etc.).

The smokiness for which authentic, high-quality Spanish paprika’s are treasured is imparted into the spice by drying the capsicum and chilli fruits over smoking oak before grinding. Paprika products prepared in this way are generally marked as ‘smoked’, and are still available in sweet, mild and hot variations.

Paprika is a popular inclusion in dishes as diverse as a traditional Hungarian goulash and a modern American turkey stuffing. It is a favourite sprinkled on eggs, a perfect match for chick peas and a rich source of flavour in BBQ meat rubs and marinades.

Most iconic, however, is the spice’s presence in Spanish sausages such as chorizo, the paprika responsible for the smokey flavour and unmistakable red colour that escapes the sausage when sliced and fried.

As well as adding flavour and heat to a dish, paprika is an excellent source of concentrated vitamin c.

La Dalia is a name synonymous with quality Spanish pimentón, the company still favouring traditional methods of production over more industrialised techniques. Their ethos, honouring the land, its people and their traditions, has ensured their range of paprika maintains all the complex characteristics that have made authentic Spanish paprika so beloved over the centuries.

Using good quality paprika imparts far more than simple colour, smokiness and heat into your dish, which is why The Essential Ingredient is proud to import and stock the La Dalia paprika range.

Available in hot smoked and sweet smoked, and in a range of sizes, this Spanish paprika will quickly become your new essential ingredient. While a perfect match for any Spanish recipe, you’ll quickly discover ways of introducing La Dalia Pimentón de la Vera into countless other dishes.

Whether it’s providing authenticity to your paella or bringing your next gravy to life, contact your nearest Essential Ingredient store today and experience the difference authentic Spanish paprika can make.

Posted under Essential Products, Featured.