They are mostly used as a ground powder as you would paprika, or as a dried, crushed spice.
They have a gentle heat to them, just a tidge more heat than normal paprika, but have more flavour than paprika – a bit more fruitiness comes through. And, they are very aromatic.
They are harvested and dried in the sun, turning a dark red. Then, the seeds are removed, then the peppers are crushed or ground.
Substitutes
1 part cayenne to 4 parts mild or sweet paprika, or hot paprika
History Notes
Aleppo Peppers are not native to Syria. They are actually an imported plant from the New World.
Literature & Lore
“And say besides that in Aleppo once,
Where a malignant and a turbaned Turk
Beat a Venetian and traduced the state,
I took by the throat the circumcisèd dog,
And smote him, thus.”
— Shakespeare. Othello Act 5, Scene 2.
