What is Paprika Actually Made Of? | Food Unwrapped

Kate Quilton knows what's inside most of the spices on the spice rack... but what exactly is 'paprika' before it becomes a powder?

Food Unwrapped / Food CIA Season 6

Our team of intrepid presenters (Jimmy Doherty, Kate Quilton, Matt Tebbutt, Helen Lawal, Andi Oliver, Amanda Byram and Briony May Williams) travel the world uncovering unusual, intriguing and surprising secrets behind the food we eat.

[Cmallon]

Video still doesn’t actually answer the question. For anyone wondering paprika can be made from various types of peppers. Sweet/Hungarian paprika is made from various sweet red peppers, most commonly the tomato pepper. Hot/Spanish paprika is made from various Chili’s, including cayenne, or a combination of chili Le and sweet peppers. Some hot paprika can be extremely hot, it just depends on the chili’s, and the amount used.

[Limrasson]

Imagine traveling across half the world just to realize that paprika is just another word for pepper.

[lucasgreene]

I have literally never heard anyone describe Paprika as spicy.

[Gecks]

Paprika is different kinds of bell pepper that are dried. Save you 6 mins of your life

[mannymanito]

She: So this is paprika, it looks like a chili
Him: no its just a paprika
She: then what is paprika
Him: just a pepper

[darwinsaye]

When she licked her finger and then dipped it the scoop of paprika to try it, I could hear the guy thinking "now I have to throw out that whole scoop'" Haha

[earthling]

They just licked their fingers and dipped em lol

[charly]

My cousin brought back a commercially packed container of paprika from Hungary for me as a gift from her travels. That one container was the tastiest, freshest batch I have ever tasted in my life. The stuff we finally get from the stores in the US are so old and stale that they can be counted on for a visual enhancement but little more. As any spice or flavoring, the closer you get to the source in time and location, the better.

[noelhenry]

Seriously? That focus on the"premium", hand-processed product and no plug for the farm or even a note in the description?

[nikistauffer]

Next: What is garlic powder actually made of.

[wihatmi]

In German, the spice is called the same as the vegetable: Paprika.

I didn't know this wasn't the same everywhere and that's why I'm surprised right now that this connection is not so self-evident everywhere in the world.

While as a child, for example, I often only knew coriander or nutmeg as a spice and therefore didn't know exactly what was behind them, paprika was always the spice that made it clear from the name what it was.

It's strange to me to think that millions of people around the world use paprika without knowing what it is.

[myselfnooneelse]

I come from south of Slovakia (shout out to my Hungarian brothers and sisters) and we also make our own, smoked variety too. Drying peppers is not for preserving the color it is to intensify the flavor of the paprika peppers, making it rich and sweeter in taste. Paprika is indeed a spice but as far as I am concerned it by all means should not be hot.

[whiskeytangosierra]

Texan here - I have been dusting eggs, and lots of other things - with paprika all my adult life. Sounds like Hungary is a place I would enjoy visiting.

[baardkopperud]

I'm from Norway, and here "paprika" is what we call bell peppers - in addition to the powdered spice.

[NilsAlbertsson]

The only reason I'm here, is because I can't believe there are actual people who really don't know what paprika is made from.

[AlexM-WI]

I didn’t initially understand the question. In my native German „Paprika“ is simply the word for bell peppers...

[darrennamoki]

I was wondering what people were talking about tasting the paprika, and then I watched her violate an entire bowl of it... heartbreaking

[numsidumsragitsch]

British people: WhAt Is pApriKa MaDe oF?
Europeans: Shaking their heads in disbelief.

[ginawiggles]

It would have been nice if she provided the information on the family run paprika business so we could source it and purchase really good paprika to enjoy at home.

[VikingPower]

I got addicted to Paprika from my travels in Hungary and now put it on everything.